


Yuri Under Ice

by DapperSheep



Category: Endless Night (Animation), Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Future, Anxiety Attacks, Cinnamon rolls, Five Stages of Grief, Gen, Georgi Being Dramatic, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Original Character(s), Skating as a Battle Form, Slow Build, Therapy, Variant Forms of PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-08
Updated: 2017-07-18
Packaged: 2018-10-29 11:54:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10853463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DapperSheep/pseuds/DapperSheep
Summary: Eighty years has passed. Time waits for no one and, neither does change.The world is different from when he remembered it to be.It was less simple. Less safe. Unfamiliar, at least.A breathe. His own. Another breathe. Not his.“Katsuki, Yuuri. What’s the last thing you remember?”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First off, I'd like to thank my beta for putting up with my inane whimsies at random hours, fangir- brainstorming with me, and taking time to check and criticize my drafts. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for them.
> 
> This is my first contribution to the fandom, and also my first public fanfiction in the lifespan of my writing hobby. Please enjoy!

 

"Excuse me, I'm coming in."

Yuuri felt almost silly talking to the empty room, but it was better than simply entering without an announcement. He’d been taught better than that.

The first time he had been in this office, he'd been too disoriented to care about the details. But now he found his eyes wandering all over the place, taking it all in with a curious air as he moved to seat himself on the sofa.

The room looked nothing like a military office, at least from the stuff he's read in books and watched on TV. It was decorated with personal effects, from framed photographs to past awards and a trinket or two that probably held a lot of sentiment for his ‘Keeper’. The shelves were lined with books on ballet and the occasional romance novel. There was a small cactus on the desk at the far end of the room, with a red bow tied around its single arm.

Giving the room a final sweep of his eyes, it looked more like a private room than anything a military office should have.

It was a little bizarre.

He didn't have to wait long. The door softly creaked open and he was at once swiveling his attention to the woman at the door.

"Hey, Yuuri. Sorry to keep you waiting." The lady spoke with an easy smile. She wasn't dressed in a stiff uniform either. Rather, she had a khaki brown military jacket thrown over her shoulders and was wearing a plain white blouse, a pair of dark denims and white sneakers.

She made her way to the opposite chair instead of the one behind the imposing desk, plopping down on it and fixed him with a friendly gleam in her dark grey eyes.

"Namikawa-san-" He cut himself off when she quickly raised her hand.

"Call me Minako. It's alright." She interrupted him, "Besides, you make me sound like I'm my mother."

She laughed at her own comment, the sound pleasant and oddly comforting to his ears. Yuuri decided he liked it when she did that and offered her a small smile in return.

"M-Minako-sensei then." He flustered, finding that it sounded at least respectful of the woman after she'd told him her story, of who she was. The title sparked a memory of a different Minako who shared many features with the one before him, even down to the same way they styled their hair. Hell, it was the same shade of brown and the beauty mark placement was rather uncanny.

"So, you wanted to tell me something? Is something the matter?" She peered curiously at him.

He shrank further into his spot on the sofa. He'd only known her for a grand total of seven days, but she was already taking to him so fondly. What confused him more was the fact that he himself didn't find this overly strange at all.

Maybe it was the physical familiarity she shared with her great-grandmother. Minako-sensei -the one he knew- had been something like a second mother for much of his life.

She'd been there for him for every competition he's had, remembered her some of her visits back when he used to live in Detroit.

Yuuri’s heart clenched at the memories. He missed her something fierce.

He hadn't noticed that he had spaced out until the older woman was calling his name. He blinked, ears and cheeks reddening as he turned his gaze down to his fists clenching at the fabric of his sweatpants.

_Man up, Yuuri, man up. Don’t waste time…!_

"Minako-sensei," He tried again, swallowing down his nervousness and pushing forward. "I was told... About what happened these past eighty years."

Immediately, her gaze took on a harder edge but said nothing. He tapered off and watched her for any sign of a remark, but upon finding none, he continued.

"So it's all true then? The world, this... this t- _thing_. All of it?" So many had repeated the same words over and over but he believed none of them, felt that he couldn't accept reality until it came from someone he trusted. And she was his closest bet.

The woman sighed. "Just as the big wigs said it, I'm just confirming that yes, a lot of things changed the eighty years you were- well, asleep. I can't lie to you that the world outside is fine and moving into the future with no problems. And I certainly can't ignore the thing we've been fighting for like it didn’t cause all of this."

_Oh._ "I think that it's a nightmare." Yuuri remarked honestly as his mind remained blank of any other words to say.

Minako nodded, her gaze softening. "I can imagine. This is definitely not something I'd want to wake up to, either. So, what about that other part?"

“Other part?”

“I know that’s not all they’ve had to say to you.”

"I... I don't know what you're saying."

Minako shot him a look and said, "Don’t give me that, Yuuri. You know what I'm talking about."

The young man swallowed loudly, caught in his lie. He kept his eyes averted to the carpet and vehemently shook his head.

"Why not? You were one of the best before. With practice, you could make the senior skating division in no time. I understand you have never been part of the military before, but it's nothing you can't adjust to over time. And this is different from being in the real army."

"It's not about that." The words floated from his mouth.

"Then what is it?"

"I... I don't know, Minako-sensei. I just..." Snippets of the videos he was shown flashed in his mind. The world eighty years later was different from what he knew, what he remembered.

Almost half of it locked in near eternal winter, and terrorized by a dark fog that warped the minds of those it made contact with. No one survived or, more accurately, no one has ever survived with their sanity intact. He couldn't get the images out of his head of the aftermath.

The sport he was so passionate about was now considered a fighting form to combat this dark fog. Odd as it sounded, it was one of the very few ways that kept it at bay. Temporarily, at best. From everyone who had talked about it, nothing could destroy this strange dark fog. At least, nothing that has been discovered yet.

There was spoken hope that he would join the ranks of those who were fighting it, joining the people who willingly threw themselves into the fight.

_‘Why?’_ was the question he had asked.

_‘Because you have the desire_.’ was the simple reply given to him.

It was a joke, he thought initially. It had to be. But seeing the videos, the _living proof_ that none of what he was shown were fabricated materials of an extensive prank, he'd be stupid to keep insisting otherwise.

But that hadn't been the clincher.

_There were screams he can't hear. Lights exploding overhead. Steel beams falling. Bodies crushed and beyond saving. Blood splattered on the cracked ice. On his hands. In his eyes-_

He realized slowly that his hands were shaking. No- his whole body was trembling and a steady stream of tears fell from his eyes as his heartbeat quickened. Was this fear for his life? Was this the grief finally catching up since the day he woke up? It certainly felt like it.

He wanted so badly to wake up from this nightmare, had tried countless times hitting himself in hopes that he would wake up on his bed in his family home and looking forward to another normal day at the rink.

His first day out under the open sky had been the slap to reality. He realized then, that he was in Hasetsu, and that this was not a dream. His family is gone, what friends he had were all buried six feet under. He was a man out of time and there was no way for him to go back.

Things like that only happened in movies. Shouldn’t they?

_Blood smeared the ice before him and- don'tlookdon'tlookdon'tlook-_

He didn't want to think about that. Didn't want to recall the disjointed nightmares that made little sense he was plagued with since the revelation.

_Don't look._

He’d screamed himself hoarse in that moment under the open sky. Cried until he was a pathetic, gibbering mess- why was it suddenly so hard to _breathe_?

Minako had moved the short distance separating them and was already at his side. “Breathe, Yuuri. Don’t speak. Just breathe. Focus on me. Match your breathing to mine.”

He listened to her, doing nothing but what he was told. She placed a warm hand on his knee and was using the other to rub soothing circles on his back. The gestures were comforting and he forced his breathing to match hers, eventually feeling his breathing return to some normalcy as the dark spots dancing in his vision faded away.

"Sensei." He said, quieter this time when he found his voice again.

"Yuuri?"

He hesitated for a moment before his shoulders drooped as he turned his head to look at her, uncaring about his tear-stained, frightened expression. He uttered the words with grave finality, knowing it was his answer to everyone's veiled plea.

"I just _can't_."

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One year later, things are starting to look better for Yuuri, even if it kinda isn't what he expects.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Yuri!!! on Ice and its affiliated characters in any shape or form. However, I reserve the right to own the story and the characters created for it.
> 
> It may seem a little early but it's already 05/10 in my timezone, so...
> 
> Please note that I intend for this story to expand on its world and characters, so it will not always focus on the main plot in every chapter. If a slow build isn't your thing, then this isn't the fic for you. If you like a long read, then please help yourself to a chai tea latte and enjoy.

 

_You have 0 messages._

 

It might have been the sixth time he’d checked his phone in a span of three hours, and still no changes from this morning. Or the day before. Or the day before that. Yuuri’s fingers flicked lazily across the screen for a moment before he pocketed his phone.

He mentally suppressed a sigh. It can’t be helped that he was worried about his roommate. There was neither a new selfie nor a status update for nearly two weeks and, for one thing, Yuuri knew Phichit had a social media habit that was borderline obsessive. It was so normal, in fact, that not seeing activity of him anywhere was a bothering sign.

But Yuuri had stamped out the worry before it could take him over, convincing himself to think logically.

_Phichit wasn’t kidding about signal being bad in Tokyo. I wonder if he’s alright?_ Yuuri thought as he looked out at the empty stretch of beach.

It was a Tuesday. Tuesdays were universally the most boring day of the week with everyone still grumpy from the reminder of Monday, and it was still far off from the weekend. Yes, he lived on a military base and technically there isn't anything like a weekend being observed, but most of the people he knew had a five-day workday mindset. That was one of the differences setting apart the typical military soldiers from the special unit he was an honorary member of.

Well, honorary member since he was told that even with his inability to join the fight, the higher-ups hadn’t lost hope that he would change his mind.

One year later to those words, and Yuuri blandly thought they were wasting their time, though he ironically and shamelessly used the room and facilities he’d been provided with.

The idea that they could have let him go but didn’t never left his thoughts. Why him, of all people? Did Minako-sensei vouch for him? Was Japan so low on proficient skaters that they were willing to chance on his reconsideration? It was so different from his time, when skaters were all but near commonplace individuals

He had so many questions but few were ever answered. And it was hard to insist on answers from anyone, as he later realized, and eventually stopped asking them.

On the other hand, it wasn't like he had a home to return to anyway.

It had been eighty years and the town’s layout had changed enough that a lot of what he remembered didn't apply anymore. It couldn’t even be called a town anymore with its sheer size, perhaps resembling a less urbanized Tokyo. There were more buildings, more shops. The military base took up part of the old town and what used to be a sprawling park on a sloping hill.

His family home, a small hotspring resort back then, was remade into a strange mix of a public bathhouse and a couple of residential floors above it. Initially he’d jumped on the opportunity to have an investigation on the whereabouts of his family, after Minako-sensei had seen how lonely he’d been. From what her connections could tell him, his older sister had moved out of the country with their parents, sometime in the five years after the dark fog’s appearance. But after that, the paper trail had become obscure. What was certain was that she had married prior to her departure.

If he did have surviving relatives from his sister, he wouldn’t want to suddenly appear on their doorstep asking to be sheltered. They had their own lives, and would they even believe him to be their great granduncle? He doubted it.

_Hi, my name is Katsuki Yuuri. Your great grandmother might have mentioned me a couple of times and surprisingly I’m not dead and yeah, that’s also a really long story._

Yeah, he seriously doubted that would go well.

So he resigned himself to living with the people who had been around him when he woke, worked to put it out of his mind to bother any relatives he may have left.

It wasn’t so bad, but it did little to stop him from pining for his old life. For simpler days. At least knowing that his family had survived gave his mind some comfort.

Over time, Yuuri had brought himself up to speed with other news outside of the city. Sapporo had become impossible to live in, with snow covering the region like an eternal winter. Tokyo, from what he’s gathered, still had a sizable population and protected from the cold by a state-of-the-art glass dome, though it would do little to protect the city from the dark fog if it wasn’t driven away quickly. The part of the country that still experienced some semblance of springtime and summer were the southernmost islands. Those were the places that had the most concentrated number of people.

Hasetsu had been spared the ridiculous snowfall Tokyo had sometimes, but it was still cold enough that barely anything outside of the greenhouses grew. The sea water never froze over fortunately, and is one of the things Yuuri was thankful for to have never changed. He found it calming to watch the waves hit the shores, just walking on the sand though he’d never be able to go barefoot in this cold.

He made his way back to the base, his nose and mouth covered by a thick cotton mask and his gloved hands snuggled comfily in his thermal jacket. There weren’t a lot of people out on the road today, and the walk back to the base was spent in peaceful silence.

Upon reaching the pedestrian gate of the base, the heavily clothed guards recognized him and allowed him through the first checkpoint with only a hand wave in greeting. Through a reinforced glass tube he walked to get to the second checkpoint, this time guarded only by cameras and a security monitor. Yuuri fished out the ID card he was given and lightly pressed it against the small monitor, waiting for the light to flash green and the gate slid open quickly for him. Cold air met him once again as he stepped out into the perimeter.

For the most part, the base is composed of several buildings built close together. He walked past the office buildings, all of which had a uniform economical design of grey slate colors and interconnecting walkways that linked each of them to one another.

Figuring he didn’t need to return to his room for anything else, he headed straight for the dome that housed the onsite ice rink.

Yuuri didn’t stop to talk to any of the others milling about the lobby and corridor, not that he actually made any friends outside of who Phichit had introduced to him.

_‘Really Yuuri, don’t you ever get tired of spending time with me? I feel honored!’_ He recalled Phichit’s words, spoken some months ago. He never got to form a reply to that since Phichit had laughed not a moment later and waved his own question away.

Yuuri still felt a pang of guilt at the memory even as he brushed it aside. He made his way to the rink side lockers that lined the walls. He was surprised, upon opening his locker, to find that his skates were missing.

_Huh? Where are my skates?_

"Yuuri! You’re here early." A girl from the benches caught his attention. She had her auburn hair done up in a loose bun, and wore a casual outfit consisting of a sweater, shirt and leggings. She flashed him a wide smile and waved him over.

"Ah, Yuuko." He raised his hand in greeting as he approached her. “Takeshi’s not here yet. Am I early? I even decided to walk back today instead of taking the service.”

The young woman nodded. “Yup. At least fifteen minutes than usual. And Takeshi had a last minute appointment with one of the Artists so he said he’ll follow.” She leaned back on the bench and continued, “Did Masahi-san let you off early?”

“You could say that. There wasn’t much to deliver or do today.” He answered. Yuuri looked right and left as if his skates would magically appear somewhere under the benches. “Yuuko, do you know what happened to my skates? It’s only you and Takeshi who know my locker’s passcode so I thought-”

“I thought you’d never ask!”

“Eh?” He looked surprised as Yuuko practically shoved a large brown box into his arms, now that he noticed it had been sitting innocently beside her moments ago. Curious, he opened the lid and his eyes widened at a brand new pair of ice skates inside. The blades shown with expert craftsmanship, and the black leather looked genuine rather than the old synthetic leather ones of the standard military fare he was provided with.

“Well? Put it on!” Yuuko said eagerly, almost bouncing in her seat.

“This is for me? But why…?” He couldn’t understand what caused this sudden generosity from his assistant therapist cum friend. Was it that tiny pep talk last week? Or was it something else he couldn’t remember? He was feeling a little agitated at not knowing why.

Yuuko’s excitement didn’t dampen one bit. She patted his arm lightly and said, “Put them on and let’s get out on the ice. Then I’ll tell you why.”

Yuuri did as he was told, shedding his jacket, beanie and mask before taking a seat next to her. He took the skates from the box and found them to be lightweight and sturdy in the right places. He quickly laced them up, the motions familiar enough that he was done within a few minutes, and wiggled his feet for good measure to check if they were tight enough.

They felt right, perfect even. Yuuri didn’t know how Yuuko even got his measurements just right, even if he had suspicions that his old set had been used as a base. Yuuko on the other hand, stood up and was hopping slightly from one foot to another and clapping her hands. "Hmhm, looks like a perfect fit! Ready to start today’s session?”

He nodded to her. “Sure…? But really what’s-”

“On the ice!” And then the woman was off ahead into the rink. Yuuri sighed, exasperated but fond and followed.

He slid onto the ice after her, doing small loops for a little warm up then unconsciously began testing how well his new skates were. He picked up speed, turning this way and that way then swiveling past some of the other people on the rink. He smiled, a bubble of joy surfacing at the thrill of receiving a gift and being out on the ice again even if it has been just three days since his last visit.

_‘He’s anxious to skate,’ he recalled the words of his therapist. ‘but it doesn’t mean he’s crippled with the fear of skating. Let him have his time in the rink and let’s see if it’ll help him recover.’_

His therapist had talked with him at length before suggesting somatic therapy as an alternative treatment would make better progress than simply putting him on a chair and forcing a one-on-one with him. In this case, skating was both his therapy and his source of anxiety. While his therapist had little experience in actual skating, it was his assistant who volunteered to oversee his sessions.

Yuuri later learned to remember their names as Takeshi and Yuuko Nishigori, a husband and wife tandem who had grown up in Hasetsu. Like Minako-sensei, it didn’t take long for them to grow fond of Yuuri’s shy but well-meaning personality. It may also have helped that Yuuko claimed Yuuri had a low-key dry humor and could keep up with her bantering. The young man couldn’t deny that to have some truth after all this time.

Once he had an extensive run of the rink on his new skates, he returned to Yuuko, who was looking smug as he approached her, panting and with flushed cheeks from the thrill of a good run.

“So, are you going to tell me why I suddenly lost my old skates and got these from you instead?” He asked once he found enough breath to.

The young woman placed her hands on her hips and smiled. “Well, would you believe me if I told you that’s it’s your anniversary gift?”

“My what?”

“Your anniversary gift! How could you forget that it’s been a year since you came to us?” The young woman huffed, puffing her cheeks but deflating immediately with an amused laugh at the surprised look he was likely showing.

Yuuri thought about it. That’s right. He’s been here for a year already. He hadn’t really been counting the days. “Well, I hadn’t really noticed it. Or maybe I forgot?” Yuuri remarked, sidling up to her on the rink side. “Honestly, I don’t think this kind of thing is worth celebrating.”

“You’re right.” She nodded, “But for us, that just means you’ve been around a year, still living, still getting better and reaching out to people no matter how much your mind tells you no. So let us treat it as a friendship anniversary. Takeshi and Minako-san would be a little sad to hear you say that, too. The gift is from all of us by the way.”

Yuuri felt his heart swell at the compliment and blushed. “I don’t know how to thank you both enough. Minako-sensei too.”

“Taking good care of yourself and those skates would be a first.” Yuuko replied. “Seriously, just keep going the way you are and don’t hesitate.”

They were too good to him. Too good for him but he mattered to them than just another individual to treat and send off on their way. These people are friends he never thought he’d have in this place.

“T-thank you, Yuuko.” He mumbled. He didn’t see her face, but felt her patting his shoulder and her gentle reply. “You’re welcome any time, Yuuri.”

The two shared a comfortable silence between them, watching other Skaters from across the large rink practicing their routines or chatting with one another. Beside him, Yuuko suddenly clapped her hands and turned to him.

“Ah, I just realized something.”

“W-what?”

“Wouldn’t this also mean you’re technically a hundred and three-“

“Yuuko, please!” Yuuri immediately flustered, facing her flailing his hands in front of him. “That’s just not something I’d like to think about.”

Yuuko had this teasing look on her face. “But you look so young. I mean, what I would give to look young even when I’m sixty!”

“You’re only five years older than me and you’re already thinking that far?” Yuuri lightly retorted, meaning no malice.

The brunette pouted. “Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she? I have a loving husband and three hazard-prone mochi as kids, and so far my fair beauty is still intact. I’d call myself lucky.”

Yuuri chuckled. “Don’t let Takeshi hear that. He’d never let you live it down.”

“I’d like to see him try!”

For the rest of the two hours, the two playfully threw banters between each other as they skated. Yuuri did a few toe loops, and Yuuko had tried getting him to do a triple axel but all the attempt did was making him stumble and fall on his side.

“Well… at least you tried?” Yuuko supplied helpfully. Yuuri merely groaned in response.

By the end of it, Takeshi had returned from his work shift and together they had an early dinner at the main building’s lounge. Yuuri ordered his usual bowl of katsudon with a generous helping of miso soup. There was no alcohol on base as per universal rules, so he opted for tea instead. It was just what he needed for the cold night that greeted him as they walked out and separated ways with exchanged ‘good nights’ and ‘see you at our next session!’. Yuuri watched the couple make their way to the gates, moving only when they were out of sight.

It was ten minute walk back to the dorms from there, though he didn’t mind the walk back when he was in such a good mood. The wide three-storey building that soon came into view was home to him and more than fifty Skaters and Artists put together. The building was the most eye catching and hard to miss even in the fading daylight, what with it looking less like a stone and cement box and more like a Japanese dormitory from his time. Topping it off, the walls on the ground floor were splashed with artworks of recent Artist generations overlaying one another in a startling yet appealing blend of styles.

It took him a while to learn that not everyone he met in the unit were Skaters. While people with a talent for skating were important and sought after, there was a different set of ‘fighters’ who took care of other defenses. These were the people who were collectively known as the Artists. The Japanese ex-skater didn’t know what to think of it, other than being surprised at how young many of their members were. The same could be said of the other Skaters, but there were less than a handful of those who weren’t at least his age.

He entered the building and made his way up to the second floor, moving quickly out of the way as soon as he hit the landing of his floor. A young man on a Segway whizzed past, shouting an apology to him and was gone as he sharply turned the corner into the next hallway.

Well, just another normal night at the barracks. He continued on his way and was near his door when someone called him.

“Hey, Yuuri. How’d practice go today?” He turned to see a light haired brunette approaching him, popping a bubblegum in her mouth.

Romina, he recalled her name to be. She lived on the floor below his shared room with Phichit. She wasn’t a skater or a Japan native, rather she was an Artist who hailed from the Americas and played the electric guitar. Despite her deceptively aloof expression, she was well known for being one of the friendlier ones in their unit.

“It went well. Thanks for asking.” He answered politely. His answer, while spoken in Nihongo, was translated by Romina’s earpiece to English and to the best imitation of his voice. Another wonder of the future Yuuri had woken up in, even though he didn’t know how exactly they managed to do it. It made language barriers less of a hassle though it still had its share of inconsistencies.

The brunette popped her gum again and jerked her thumb in the direction of the stairs. “So me and some of the others wanted to go out for a little drink. You interested in coming along?” She asked him.

Yuuri shook his head. “No thank you. I just had dinner and I’m thinking of turning in early tonight. Maybe next time?” He answered. The young woman didn’t look offended and instead shrugged her shoulders. She bid him a good night though, and turned on her heel back to the stairs. Once she was gone, he resumed walking to his door.

Unlike the passcode protected lockers and certain areas of the base, their doors simply needed a physical key. The first thing he noticed when he turned his key in the keyhole was that the door was unlocked.

Yuuri was initially confused. Who would- wait…

So that just means-

He didn’t hesitate and walked in to see the lights on in their room. The shower was running in their bathroom and he supposes Phichit was just settling down after the flight. He noticed there were two sleek black suitcases by the desk, still unpacked so it probably hadn’t been long since he returned. Maybe Phichit hadn’t had dinner yet? He should invite him out and just keep the Thai skater company.

Movement caught his eye and turned to look between their beds to see this large brown thing …. wagging its tail?

Yuuri belatedly realized it was a dog. And not just any dog, he recognized it to be a standard sized poodle. It was looking at him with cute beady eyes amongst the thick curled brown fur, panting and still not getting up from where it was laying down. Yuuri was by no means afraid of dogs, in fact, he was rather inclined to them and immediately smiled.

“Hey there, where’d you come from?” Yuuri bent slightly, keeping a steady gaze on the dog as it finally stood up and approached him curiously. It sniffed the hand he reached out and seemed satisfied of its judgment of him. It sat in front of him and kept wagging its tail.

A glint at the dog’s neck caught his eye and Yuuri fully bent to its eye level and tugged at the half-hidden dog tag.

_Makkachin._ The tag says in plain English. Huh, that name sounded familiar.

“Makkachin? So you have an owner. Why would Phichit bring in an owned dog?” He asked, more to himself than to the dog who was licking his hand playfully. Yuuri was immediately taken in by the gesture and indulged it with a few head rubs.

Pleased, Makkachin let out a soft happy bark, laying down and demanding for belly rubs and who was Yuuri to deny the cute fluffball the pleasure?

It didn’t escape him that Phichit wasn’t exactly a dog person, more of a hamster fanatic than anything else. Was he dog-sitting for someone on base at the last minute? Domesticated animals weren’t unheard of in the barracks.

He heard the shower turn off. Well, he’ll just have to ask his best friend then.

“Phichit!” Yuuri called, fluffing the head of the large poodle before he stood up. “Phichit! Why in the world do we have a dog here? Did someone ask you to dog sit?”

The door to his bathroom opened, heavy steam from the hot shower bursting into the room. He half expected Phichit to be poking his head out from the room but instead a man -stranger- stepped out of the bathroom like a god gracing a mortal with his presence.

Yuuri froze on the spot. The stranger’s eyes fell on him and Yuuri couldn’t help his eyes wandering briefly to the broad shoulders and toned body before snapping back up to meet those oddly beautiful eyes that seemed to look through him. He was familiar, very much so, but his mind wouldn’t stop running for a moment to get the thoughts in order.

Part of his mind screamed at the other part to do something, tell his body to do anything instead of just standing there looking dumbstruck and finally the other part relented with a single thought.

“Wow.”

 

-Wait. Did he just say that out loud? The other man’s eyes narrowed in amusement and he cracked a smile, the latter something he really shouldn’t have mentally described as a ray of sunshine through the clouds.

 

What.

The.

Fu-

 

The man stretched his hand out to him with a flourish, droplets from his wet hair flying everywhere and flashing another heart-stopping smile at him.

"Katsuki Yuuri! That's how you say it right? I'm Viktor Nikiforov and, starting today, I will personally coach you to be the best skater Japan has ever had!”

_… What?_

The in-ear interpreter Yuuri wore easily translated the man's words, but it still didn’t register in his mind. He knew who Viktor was, of course. Who wouldn’t recognize one of the world’s living skating legends and most eligible bachelor of this age?

“… Excuse me?” Yuuri managed weakly.

Viktor seemed eager to repeat his words, “I’ve come here to personally coach you.” He still hadn’t lowered his hand, like he was inviting Yuuri to come closer or take it, but the dark headed young man just stood there unable to wrap his mind around this at all.

After a brief silence, Yuuri held up a hand and slapped himself, then slapped his other cheek for good measure. His cheeks throbbed but the illusion of Viktor was still there. Still naked but the heavy steam blessedly covered his lower half.

Right, so this wasn't a hallucination. There was Viktor Nikiforov, the legendary Russian Ice Emperor, in his bedroom and no sign of his roommate even returning from his sortie.

Yuuri stared blankly at the man who was returning his stare with a cheerful smile of his own. The steam from the bathroom was dissipating quickly in the colder room and soon the young man discovered that Viktor conveniently didn't have a towel on him.

"Katsuki-san?"

Yuuri is a simple man. He sees an attractive _naked_ stranger in his room, he does the first thing that comes to mind.

He screamed.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter two is scheduled to be released on 05/12. Succeeding chapters will then follow a loose bi-weekly update, or may depend on my availability after office hours. Criticism and questions are much welcomed, but please keep the ad hominem out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Yuri!!! on Ice and its affiliated characters in any shape or form. However, I reserve the right to own the story and the characters created for it.
> 
> Early timezone again so here y'all go. Might as well expect the same for future chapters. Bland Product Naming trope ahoy! Samples of these will appear all throughout the story from hereon out.

 

Yuuri shouldn’t be here.

His scream had alerted a lot of the residents and people had rushed to his door, asking him what was going on. He’d barely had enough time to think and act, shoving the Russian back into the bathroom and half-screaming, half-begging him to _put some clothes on!_ before someone literally rammed his door down. Well, Viktor had been in his room and Yuuri had been the first one to see him and that point alone demanded answers, but that may just be the part of him that was still in shock.

There was a flurry of chaos after that when Viktor stepped out of the bathroom, thankfully dressed. Yuuri couldn’t remember much of what happened, though he did remember a lot of screaming had ensued. He didn’t think he’d want the details anyway.

The next thing he knew, he and Viktor were being called to a conference room like schoolboys to the principal’s office, fetched no less by a shocked Minako when she saw who exactly had caused her charge to stir up a ruckus. Makkachin had to be left behind, though there was no shortage of people who volunteered to look after him.

Yuuri now sat in the room beside the Russian, the older man filled out the dark turtleneck, grey sweater and jeans nicely, if the accidental show earlier wasn’t proof enough of this man’s naturally handsome features. Still, the overall mood in the room was affecting Yuuri too much to be able to appreciate the close proximity.

He didn’t bother to hide his sigh as he slumped in his seat, adjusting his glasses when it nearly slipped from his face. _Well, this was a fun way to end a good day._

Morooka coughed, drawing all their attention to him seated at the head of the table. Out of all the special unit officers Yuuri had been told of, it was Morooka who he often saw, and who Minako always referred to. Why it was so, Yuuri could only assume. But for all the times he’d personally interacted with the older man, Yuuri had found him to be a reasonable man, if a little too generous and loud with advices.

Now, Morooka looked like he’d been harassed before coming here, with his unruly brown hair looking more harried than usual and there was an annoyed gleam in his tired expression. He’s never seen the older man like that, and he had fervently wished he wasn’t the reason to put the man in such a mood.

Yuuri felt very small being in the same room as three people who he respected for different reasons, and tried hard not to shrink further into his seat beside Viktor who he also tried not to glance at more than he should.

_Save me, Minako-sensei._ He internally wept, taking deep breaths to steady himself. The woman in question seemed to be more distracted with Viktor though. If she was ogling, Yuuri certainly wasn’t going to call her out.

“So let me get this straight, Viktor.” Morooka started, shooting Viktor a very calculating gaze. He didn’t even bother with honorifics. “You flew in from Russia, broke into a Skater’s room, used his bathroom without consent and proclaimed that you would be his coach?”

Viktor nodded, denying none of it. “Yes. And I am quite serious about my decision.” He added with a smile.

Seemingly unaffected, Morooka turned his gaze to Yuuri, who immediately straightened up. The brunet officer started to speak in a slow and serious tone, “Yuuri-san. Some of the residents heard a scream from your room. Tell me honestly, did Viktor inappropriately assault you in any way or form?”

Yuuri heard a scandalized gasp that was probably from Minako, but that had been overshadowed by both him and Viktor doing a synchronized spit take. The Russian proceeded to chuckle behind his hand while Yuuri flushed red and sputtered, “N-No! M-Morooka-san, he didn’t- He wouldn’t do that to me! I was just surprised that he was there and it wasn’t Phichit-kun who stepped out and there was a dog and I thought for sure it was Phichit-kun but-” Yuuri realized he was rambling and took a deep breath to calm himself.

“… No. He didn’t assault me in any way.” Yuuri deflated as he finished.

No one needed to know what he saw. No one. Ever. He also mentally put ‘Embarrassed self in front of idol’ on his list of life achievements.

That seemed to at least appease his officer and the man rubbed his forehead as he spoke, “Thank you for that, Yuuri. Ease up, I’m not here to be angry with you. As for you Viktor,” He didn’t glance at the man as he continued, “As much as I am a personal fan of yours, I didn’t think I’d have to deal with you under these circumstances. By the way, you’re declared as M.I.A. from the St. Petersburg base, did you know that?”

“Oh they’ve found out already?” Viktor genuinely sounded surprised, causing Minako to hide her laugh in a snort and for Yuuri to slowly turn his head at the man.

_Was he for real?_

Morooka certainly seemed to think this wasn’t a lighthearted matter as Viktor was putting it as he continued in a serious yet tired tone, “I thought I should explain this to your officer but well, you know HIM more than I do. So why don’t we just let both of you talk? Haruka, if you please.” He motioned to his assistant, who nodded and typed something on her laptop. The screen behind him flared to life and was white for a moment, before it blinked and suddenly there was a balding, jaw-squared, unhappy old man glaring at everyone in the room.

Or more like he was glaring at Viktor once his eyes found the silver haired man, but Yuuri still couldn’t help swallowing under the gaze anyway. Morooka closed his eyes and held his breath for what came next.

“VIKTOR!” The man on the screen screamed in a gravelly voice Yuuri’s translator made even more grating. Yuuri visibly jumped in his seat while Viktor himself looked unperturbed as the older man continued his screaming, “What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

Yuuri couldn’t even believe how Viktor could remain cheerful as he explained, “Oh Yakov! Well, I am in Japan on a temporary career shift until Kats-”

“Don’t give me that shit, Viktor! You flew off, on a civilian plane no less, with your dog under the pretense of a vacation leave to Moscow and this is what I wake up to after approving your leave?” Yakov interrupted him immediately in the same angry tone.

“Technically I have been off active duty for the past five months and there isn’t much for me to do aside from that junior division who Mila has been trying to get me to teach.” Viktor explained, leaning forward on the table while resting his chin on his knuckles. “You know I can’t do that.”

Yakov looked like he was ready to bust a vein. He slammed his fists on the desk in the video and yelled again, “What possessed you to even think of this?! How did you even know Katsuki Yuuri was- that he’s there in Hasetsu specifically?”

“Well, I was listening. And I asked you last week.”

“What?” Yakov’s tone implied he was so baffled by Viktor’s reply.

“You told me when I asked.” Viktor repeated casually.

“The first part, Viktor.”

“Ahh, that.” Viktor smiled pleasantly to the otherwise enraged man. Yuuri has never seen someone so calm in the face of this much trouble and frankly, it scared and awed him. “Yakov, you know me better than that.” Viktor answered in a singsong. “Besides, this is more interesting than coaching juniors. There are enough coaches there for the little ones.”

Yakov sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. There was a lengthy pause before he spoke again, annoyance laced authority oozing from his tone. “Would everyone but Viktor and Officer Morooka and his assistant step out of the room for a moment? This matter concerns only us.”

With that dismissal, Yuuri hid his enthusiasm to get away behind a polite bow and quick casual strides to the door. Once out in the hallway followed, he deflated again and covered his face with his hands.

_This is not a dream, Yuuri. This is not a dream._ He’s supposed to be excited having Viktor on base and _talking_ to him. If Viktor hadn’t dropped that bomb on him, maybe he would have been. Others would have jumped at the chance to be in his circumstance, but not Yuuri. Oh no, this was far from being a good thing.

“I can’t believe that Viktor is really here.” Was the first thing Minako said as soon as the door closed behind them. Yuuri almost felt like puking his dinner, but forced himself to not waste perfectly good katsudon.

“Minako-sensei, you do realize he’s trying to become my coach, right?”

“But he will be _your_ coach.” She gushed, unconsciously pirouetting on the spot in sheer excitement. “And he will be here every day and up close instead of just gracing us in videos. He hasn’t even set foot in Japan since his debut year! This is really an exciting turn of events! I never dreamed I’d get a chance to even be in the same room as Viktor. Ahh~! Best career shift decision ever!”

Of course. Minako had to be one of Viktor’s many, many eager fans. Yuuri can’t blame her enthusiasm but this situation was not amusing him at all. He reached out and squeezed her shoulders firmly. “Minako-sensei.” He said flatly, “I can’t _skate_ , remember?”

That seemed to bring her back to her senses. “Right… right, sorry, Yuuri. I got carried away there.”

Yuuri was quick to forgive her. He understood what it was like to be so close to someone he idolized. But right now? Not so much.

“Don’t you think it’s strange?” He asked.

“What do you mean?”

“What… Yakov-san said. About Viktor knowing that I’m here and jumping on the idea of coaching me. Aren’t I just some obscure figure skater that happened to just be from eighty years ago? How’d he even know I’m here?”

Obscure was a debatable word. While Yuuri had holes in his memory, it wasn’t a reason for him to simply wait for the memories to resurface. He had spent days catching up and from his readings, he knew that he wasn’t obscure in a sense that he had a sizeable database folder on his achievements and personal life. Access of course, courtesy of Minako. Keepers were required to know their charge’s backgrounds after all.

He had been a good skater, was in the top six in the Winter Olympics once and that wasn’t counting the other tournaments he was active in. But he was obscure enough that his facial features weren’t all that unique, and could be mistaken for an average Japanese. Most of the people who he now socialized with thought he just happened to share a name with a popular figure skater from before the appearance of the dark fog, and just happened to have been into skating before an accident traumatized him that he couldn’t skate again. It wasn’t that farfetched, and the perfect cover story. As far as anyone knows, the ‘original’ Yuuri Katsuki had died a long time ago.

So for Viktor to come here didn’t seem at all like a random whim. There had to be a specific reason someone of his caliber would seek him out. That made more sense to Yuuri’s mind.

“Now that you mention it, that does sound strange. Maybe we can ask him once he’s out of there?” Minako remarked as she glanced at the closed door. “It could have been that video of you skating. Viktor must have seen it.”

“I guess- Wait, video? What video?” Yuuri paled as soon as the words left his mouth.

“Eh? You mean you didn’t know, Yuuri? It was a big hit on YouTube.” Minako was shooting him a surprised look. He blinked. YouTube? He didn’t have an account there. Since when did he ever record-

Then the realization hit him. It wasn’t impossible but…

No. Oh no.

No no no no no no- NO.

It can’t be them.

 

_“Yuuri! Meet my kids, Axel, Loop and Lutz. Girls, play nice with him. He’s still a patient even if he doesn’t look like it.”_

_Yuuri recalled the Hashigori triplet, distinct only in their hairstyles and color coded outfits. Yuuko had mentioned them a couple of times and this was the first time he was meeting them in person. They immediately crowded around him, peering up at him with three pairs of wide eyes._

_“Is it really him? He looks all fat and chubby like my teddy bear. I thought he’d look like grandpa Hase. All wrinkly and bent!” The triplets said, finishing a sentence each except for twin pigtailed one who said the last two. Yuuri felt his eye twitch but kept a smile on his face and kindly let Yuuko handle the girls while he slowly moved back and stood by the side with Takeshi._

_“They sure look like a handful.” Yuuri commented._

_Takeshi folded his arms and nodded solemnly. “They are. You should see their hobbies. Crazy about skating even at their age. And I mean cray-zee.” Takeshi answered. Yuuri thought that it was nice to be passionate about something so young._

_“I don’t mind. At least they don’t seem to be all that bad.”_

_There was a snort from Takeshi before he mumbled loud enough for Yuuri to hear, “That opinion of yours is going to change soon enough.”_

_“… That doesn’t sound right coming from their father.” Yuuri mumbled back and Takeshi only shrugged._

_“Yuuri-san!” Yuuri looked towards the triplets approaching him. “Yuuri-san! We have a question.”_

_“J-just call me Yuuri.” That just seemed to make the girls’ eyes shine brighter. Behind the kids, Yuuko just shot him a regretful look._

_“Yuuri, Yuuri! So mom said you got to watch a lot of videos of skaters from all over. Who’s your favorite?” He couldn’t tell which of the triplets was who, but it didn’t matter when they were speaking for all three of them._

_Yuuri gave the question some thought. “Well I… I really liked Viktor’s routines.” He answered._

_The girls squealed. “We like Viktor too! Well, we like everyone, but Viktor is a big, big favorite of ours! He’s graceful and it’s just so beautiful to watch him skate! We want to skate like him someday. Or like Phichit, he’s really cool too!”_

_Yuuri chuckled. Ah, kids. These girls were adorable and he didn’t see what the Takeshi was fussing about._

_“Viktor sure is.” He agreed wholeheartedly._

_“Maybe you could get better if you skated to Viktor’s latest routine? You know, the Stay Close to Me one? You’ve seen it right?” One of the triplets ventured to ask._

_Of course. He’d seen it so many times he could remember the routine down to the step sequences, to where a jump happens, and what kind of emotion Viktor may have been trying to convey with his movements. It would have been labeled as an exhibition skate in his era, but it had to be one of the best fight videos he’s ever seen. But to actually replicate it?_

_“Well…” He trailed off reluctantly._

_“Please, Yuuri? Please?” The triplets pleaded. Behind them Yuuko was already shaking her head at him while crossing her arms in an X in front of her. But… how could he say no to these kids?_

_Well, he wasn’t losing anything by attempting it anyway, right?_

_Once he was out on the ice, he’d replaced most of the jumps with a downgraded version that he could execute. To make up for the lack of technical difficulty, Yuuri had put more emotion into his gestures and step sequences, imagining the lyrics calling out to him, speaking for the loneliness he couldn’t quite confess to others and the longing to find someone –anyone- who could fill that gnawing hole in him._

_At the last second, he thought he could make the final jump as is. That had quickly proven to be a mistake and he failed it so spectacularly that he faceplanted the ice so hard he barely heard Takeshi calling him in panic._

 

There was a video on the internet with that epic fail? Yuuri felt more and more color draining from his face and didn’t quite register another presence joining them until he heard his name again.

“… Isn’t it great, Katsuki-san?” He heard a male voice speak. Yuuri blinked, focusing on the Russian’s face and his cheeks colored red at their close proximity. Minako looked like she was torn between agreeing with whatever Viktor had said or siding with Yuuri. She was about to open her mouth but Haruka had popped her head out from the room and told the ballet instructor that Morooka needed to speak with her. Minako could only shoot Yuuri an apologetic look before she disappeared into the room.

“Excuse me?” Yuuri’s brain finally caught up to the moment.

“Yakov allowed me to coach you for a year to get you prepared for the field.” Viktor beamed.

_No._ “What? And… Morooka-san? He didn’t approve you, did he?”

“No, pretty much approved me as well!”

_Oh no._ He did not like where this was going. There was no way he was agreeing to this. Morooka should know he wasn’t ready for any of this. He and Minako had personally approached him on that decision before!

“No.” The word had come out on its own.

“Hm?”

“This- this is not great!” Yuuri stammered out. He needed to put a stop to this. Get Takeshi or Yuuko to take that video down, maybe drown in alcohol and pretend that his life hadn’t just taken a skate blade in the face. He felt queasy and his stomach felt like it really wanted to get rid of his dinner the wrong way.

He had to take close his eyes and take deep breathes because he will not allow himself to vomit in front of the Ice Emperor. He’d embarrassed himself enough already today-

“Katsuki-san, are you alright?” He opened his eyes to see the Russian leaning close with concern in his gaze. “Maybe you should sit down?”

That sounded like a wonderful idea, maybe upgrade that to curling up in bed. But Yuuri needed to put a stop to this before the situation came crashing down even more.

“Viktor-san, I appreciate your interest in coaching me but,” He sighed and breathed deeply again. “I am unable to skate. You saw the video, I remembered how that routine went. I downgraded the jumps to the ones I can land. And even when I kept final one as is, I failed that. I’m not cut out for the kind of skating you all think I have the potential for.”

Viktor stood back and placed a finger to his chin, looking thoughtful. “Nonsense. Your routine was beautiful, if very simplified.” Viktor defended, “There was passion in your execution, Katsuki-san, even if you can’t see it yourself. And it’s just sitting right there waiting to be honed like a steel blade.”

“That’s beside the point. I can’t skate, Viktor.” Yuuri insisted, feeling annoyed at the other man completely missing the fact that it wasn’t easy to overcome his anxiety.

“Can’t skate or won’t skate? You do know you don’t have to be a great skater to be great?”

“That... that doesn’t even make sense!” Yuuri exclaimed.

The Russian ran a hand through his short silvery hair and lifted a finger. “To put it simply, there are worse skaters than you who managed to earn the honor of fighting on the field, even if they couldn’t execute a perfect axel or get enough technical points. It’s only a bonus in the real scenario, what matters is the passion.” Viktor explained. “You have a lot of it, and I don’t want to see that go to such a waste! You might even be able to compete with me someday.”

Yuuri stared at him, completely at a loss on how to convince him that this idea was going nowhere. Morooka-san and the other officers had tried for a year, and nothing had changed with his decision. What made Viktor, who was a stranger to him beneath it all, think he could make Yuuri change his mind? He was never skating out there, even if it was Viktor Nikiforov coming forward with this offer.

The young man took a step back, shaking his head.

“I… I’m sorry. Please find another person to coach.” The statement fell dead at the end but Yuuri didn’t wait for Viktor’s reply and quickly ran off in the opposite direction. To his credit and immense relief, Viktor didn’t follow.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is scheduled to be released on 05/22, maybe earlier depending on progress. Criticism and questions are much welcomed. Kudos also much appreciated!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Yuri!!! on Ice and its affiliated characters in any shape or form. However, I reserve the right to own the story and the characters created for it.
> 
> More bland product naming, yey. Also, small apologies to those who are expecting super-duper stick-to-canon personalities for all the characters. This is a Canon Divergent AU world, and so there would be changes for each individual, especially given their situation.

 

“Hello, Yuuri. Working hard today, aren’t we?” The elderly Masahi asked, seeing Yuuri coming in with a box. The young man settled his load on top of another by the door and he slid his cotton mask down to breath deep.

“I thought I’d put a little more effort into my job, Masahi-san.” He replied, glancing at the older man. His part time job as Masahi’s errand boy and assistant at his humble ramen store afforded him a place to be, aside from being cooped up in the base all the time. Lately, he wasn’t looking forward to going home early and his job was a good excuse to stay out as long as he could.

The elderly man chuckled, attending to the noodles on the stove before he regarded Yuuri again. “You’re still young, my boy. Shouldn’t you be more concerned about what you want to do with the rest of your youth?” He asked.

“Helping you with the store is one thing I want to do with my youth.” Yuuri responded quickly and plainly.

The old man rolled his eyes. “Not even a sweetheart to spend your attention and money on? Bah! What is Yuuko doing? She should be finding you a proper girlfriend to go out with.” He mumbled as he went about preparing an order for a customer. Yuuri sighed and came over to the counter, waiting on the old master to finish preparing a bowl of ramen before he delivered it to the customer’s table.

After serving the ramen, the brunet moved back behind the counter and began to unpack the various ingredients from the boxes, knowing where to place them since he’d been working long enough at this store. When a new customer would come in, Yuuri would pause from sorting out the supplies to take down the customer’s orders, wait for the elderly man to finish cooking it, then serve. And then he’d return to sorting the inventory until the next customer comes. It was a routine Yuuri was familiar with by now.

Masahi had mostly allowed Yuuri to work for him because of Takeshi’s recommendation. He’d already taken on another part-timer, but having Yuuri around when the other was not on shift helped the old man even when he didn’t readily admit to it. The old man was gruff, and a little rough around the edges though he didn’t hate Yuuri. If that were the case, he wouldn’t have accepted to take the young man even if he was a good friend of Takeshi’s. He’d claimed it was out of bemusement of a ‘Skater’ doing something so menial as this, even if Masahi really didn’t understand the whole situation.

As the hustle and bustle at the ramen store slowly died down, the other part-timer arrived. As Yuuri recalled, she was a young housewife who took up extra work here to earn a little income for her family. She was a chatty one, though Yuuri’s shift didn’t always overlap with hers. He bade his goodbyes to his employer and peer before stepping out into the cold.

Walking back to the base, his mind drifted aimlessly to thoughts of the days since Viktor had walked into his life.

When Viktor had been merely a man on the videos he watched, Yuuri imagined he was this handsome figure full of mystery and unearthly grace. The way he skated against the looming dark fog and dispersed it with just one performance enraptured the young man who could barely remember anyone move the way Viktor did on the ice.

With his subsequent face to face with the Russian, Yuuri’s image of him kind of broke. Not shattered, simply that he was far from what the bespectacled youth was expecting. He’d imagined that Viktor was a charming no-nonsense man of exceptional talent. Instead, he’d turned out to be… well, whoever it was Yuuri had met starting from that night. It’s not to say that he stopped respecting and admiring him, but the way he was interacting with Yuuri was driving the latter closer and closer to a wall.

Since the morning after the meeting, the Russian had been relentless in following him around. When he wasn’t openly insisting on becoming his couch, he would try to get Yuuri to join him on various activities.

“Katsuki-san, let’s have breakfast together!”

“Katsuki-san, would you like to join me on a run around the dorm?”

“There’s a hot spring bathhouse in the city! And a castle, too! Katsuki-san, would you be my guide?”

“Katsuki-san, do you want to sleep together?”

Yuuri had lost count on how many times he’d been asked. Still, it was hard to get mad at the Russian, partly because his enthusiasm was genuine, however appalling some of his invitations were. It was simply exhausting to have to keep refusing the man, knowing if he said yes to any of it, it will eventually lead to the same topic he didn’t want to talk about.

Fortunately, Viktor seemed to limit the pestering to just around the base. He hadn’t attempted to follow Yuuri out to his part time job, or to break into his room again. He did have the ungodly habit of knocking early though, and that was a real mood killer.

Out of desperation, Yuuri went to Minako-sensei to do something about his unwitting stalker. He lasted this long, but he couldn’t last another day of the Russian’s cheerful invites to do this or that. The next thing Yuuri knows, Viktor hadn’t been around to pester him for the rest of the morning. And by the time he came back from his job later that afternoon, there was no sign of the silver-haired Russian at all waiting for him at the dorms. There wasn’t anyone out on the ground floor, though he supposes most were still at the rink at this hour.

_Did they finally get him to leave?_ Yuuri thought as he looked about the main lobby. Part of him felt saddened at the Russian’s departure. He honestly wanted to spend time with the man, talking about ordinary things and about skating without the looming thought of being cajoled into entering the Skater unit. Just simple talk. But of course, nothing ever really goes the way he wishes for. Not in this era. He let out a sad sigh when suddenly his phone vibrated and he fumbled it out of his pocket. Checking it, his expression brightened up immensely and he quickly replied.

 

**p-chit.chewham:** Yuuuuri~! (ᗒᗨᗕ) Mị dị cex kạn nan ley na!

**yuu_katsudon:** Sa wat dee, Phichit! Ur safe? U coming home?

**p.chit.chewham:** Yep! So hard to get any good signal up in Tokyo. Bad snowstorm and the whole fight going down.

**p.chit.chewham:** I couldnt even get a selfie before the fight because everything was just c h a o s outside the dome.

**yuu_katsudon:** That bad? Was it huge?

**p-chit.chewham:** Bigger than the usual I fight. Took all of us to drive it off into chunks. No casualties this time!

**yuu_katsudon:** That’s good. When is your flight back?

**p.chit.chewham:** Actuallyyyyy…. Im already here. ∠( ᐛ 」∠)＿

**yuu_katsudon:** What? Really?

**yuu_katsudon:** Phichit. Where are you?

**p.chit.chewham:** Behind you. (*꒪ヮ꒪*)

 

The moment he turned around, an olive-skinned young man grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a fierce hug. Yuuri laughed at the same time returning the hug with his own.

“sà-wàt-dee, Yuuri! Khuṇ khidt̄hụng c̄hạn h̄ịm?” Yuuri blinked. Was Phichit speaking Thai? He placed his hands to his ears and realized one of his in-ear translators wasn’t there. He pulled away quickly and raised a finger to tell Phichit to wait a moment as he searched and found the small black earpiece by his feet. He rubbed it against his coat before stuffing it into his ear.

“Sorry, it just fell out.” Yuuri smiled sheepishly.

Phichit merely smiled and replied, “No problem! We wouldn’t understand each other as well without it anyway. Unless we talk in English, but we both suck at it anyway.”

Not much has changed with the Thai Skater. Even when Yuuri hadn’t heard much from him until now, he found his worries to be unfounded with Phichit’s safe return.

“I’m glad you’re back safe.”

“So am I! I thought I’d never get back here but wow, the battle was just thrilling all the same. You should have been there and seen how I skated. And Yukuri-san from the Tokyo base was just awesome as well!” Phichit gushed, “Ahh~ if only my pod could take selfies. I’d love to get photos of everyone skating out there!”

“I’m sure you would love that.”

“I know right?” Phichit grinned from ear to ear. “Anyway… I heard from Ciao Ciao. Viktor is here, isn’t he?”

The brunet sighed. _Of course. That kind of news can never be hushed._ And knowing Phichit, he wasn’t going to let that slide easily. But then, for all his eagerness for gossip and taking photos of virtually everything, there was a good reason the Thai became his good friend in such a short amount of time.

“Phichit-kun… can we save that for later? I’m a little tired right now.” Yuuri asked, maybe sounding a little too pleading. Phichit took the words at face value and simply waved a hand dismissively.

“No problem. I have to drop my things over at our room anyway. You hungry? We can grab something to eat then if you want, tell me the juicy stuff when we’re back at our room.” Phichit said. It was a fair enough exchange, so Yuuri agreed to it and watched his friend run off with his luggage in tow.

It was nice having his friend back, especially now with Viktor’s presence shaking him up. He needed someone to talk to who wasn’t going to shoot him pitying looks or talk behind his back about ‘such a loss’ or ‘why him?’. He waited patiently by the stairs, looking through the flood of images he was now getting from Phichit’s queue on Quickshot when the double glass doors at the other end of the wide hall slid open.

“Oi! Viktor! Where the hell are you?! Viktor!”

Yuuri was startled by the sudden holler, turning his gaze sharply to the entrance and spotting an unfamiliar young man looking around as if hunting for someone. Yuuri shot him another glance before looking back at his phone, intent on ignoring the only other person in the lobby.

“Hey you.” The glowering voice suddenly called his way. Yuuri flinched before slowly turning to look at the teen in more focus as the other approached him in quick strides. Pale blonde hair fell over half his face. He kept his hood up so the upper half of his face was hidden in its shadow. If Yuuri didn’t know better, he’d have mistaken the teen for one of the shady guys who used to linger around the dark back alleys of Detroit in the dead of the night. All that was missing was a knife or a gun pointed at his face.

“H… how can I help you?” Yuuri tried to smile as he asked.

The teen seemed to take no notice of his stutter or nervous disposition. “You know Viktor, right?” He asked Yuuri.

Could he lie? No, he was terrible at lying, especially when he’s nervous. One look at this guy and he knew that would probably just piss him off. Better play it safe, then.

“W-well, yes…?” He answered unsurely.

“You know where that idiot is then?”

“Eh?”

“I heard he’s dicking around here in Japan.”

“I… I wouldn’t know where he’s always at-” One glare from the teen’s suddenly visible green eye made him stop and swallow his words. What was wrong with this guy?!

“You’d have an idea. I’m not from around this hovel and I need to see Viktor. Now.” He demanded. “Take me to wherever he is.”

Was this guy nuts? Demanding him and expecting that he’d know where Viktor was when he hasn’t seen the other for the _whole day_?

Apparently his silence was taken as unwillingness to answer by the other, and the hooded teen snarled at him. “The hell’s your problem? Fine, I didn’t expect the Skaters around here to be dumb too. Always have to do this shit on my own.” The blonde mumbled angrily and promptly stormed off in a huff. Yuuri could only watch in shock before his mind started to catch up.

Was Viktor in trouble with this guy? He sounded like he knew him and certainly could be a Skater from Russia. Shit, shit, shit! Was there going to be a bloodbath and he’d just unwittingly talked to a vengeful peer? Being so far from their superiors meant things could happen unnoticed for a long while and- oh, that wasn’t a good thought to have at all right now.

Yuuri sent a quick reply to Phichit, telling him he’d meet him later and immediately rushed out after the other. His mind protested the sudden surge of heroism and asked him what he was going to do once he gets the teen’s attention.

Heck, he didn’t know. He didn’t plan these sorts of things beforehand.

“Hey… hey! Wait a minute!” Yuuri called out to the back of the briskly walking teen. The other stopped and fully turned to him, the hood slipping further down in the process and Yuuri could see a full head of pale blonde and a very annoyed expression on the younger one’s face.

“Eh? The hell do you want, fatso?”

_Smart move, Yuuri. Now what?_ His mind sneered at him. Yuuri gulped and tried to think of what he can possibly do before the other decided he’d be better off with a knife to his gut. No wait, he can’t think of that right now. Focus, Yuuri! Focus!

He didn’t even know if Viktor had already left the base, but maybe if he could somehow convince the other that he had already flown back to Russia, maybe that would work?

“Uh… I-”

“Katsuki-san! I went to the castle today and it was- Oh Yuri! Hello!”

He was saved by the person he least expected would show up in this situation. Both of them snapped their heads to the quickly approaching form of Viktor in a heavy coat and scarf, waving a hand at both of them with a cheerful look plastered on his face. Behind him, Makkachin was barking and wagging his tail.

“Oi, Viktor! There you are! Come on, we’re going home.” The other ‘Yuri’ demanded, stomping over to Viktor until they were only five feet apart.

The short-haired Russian tilted his head, looking comically confused. “Eh? What’s up? Did Yakov put you up to this? I didn’t think he’d change his mind so fast.”

“I overheard you and Yakov talking.” Yuri said, voice flat but the hard glint in his eye told otherwise.

Viktor’s mouth made a silent ‘o’ of surprise. “That’s rather naughty of you, Yuratchka.” Viktor smiled as he continued, “I’m guessing Yakov doesn’t know about you being here either. So, what brought you over?”

There was a heavy pause as Yuratchka, or Yuri, balled his fists. “You honestly forgot what you promised me?” He asked, tone dangerously low.

“Mm… you know I’m the forgetful type.” Viktor said casually. That was, apparently, the wrong thing for him to say.

“Damn it, Viktor!” Yuri yelled, stomping his foot like an angry child. “Don’t make fun of me! You fucking promised me a program when I get promoted into the Seniors Division and then you go off and pull shit like this!”

_Wait, that was the reason he flew all the way here?_ Yuuri thought, watching the exchange with mild confusion mixed with rising anxiety. He was all but forgotten as the pale blonde focused all his attention on Viktor, and the tall Russian was also fixated on the younger one with thinly veiled amusement.

Yuri continued to rant, “-And for what? Some guy named Katsuki Yuuri? Quick history lesson, Viktor: He’s as dead as the rest of the skaters in the archives and, last I remember, we don’t have the kind of tech to bring someone back! You’re a real dumbass if you actually believe that.” Yuri argued, getting more irate by the second. He jabbed a thumb at Yuuri and snarled, “THIS guy is just some amateur on skates trying to imitate your routine and failing to even get any of the jumps right!”

Yuuri visibly flinched at the words.

“Oi, don’t think for a sec that I didn’t recognize you, fatso.” Yuri glanced at him with pure disdain in his visible eye as he sneered, “It’s hard not to recognize a pig like you.”

“H-hey, it’s not nice to talk like that.” Yuuri protested weakly.

Yuri continued to sneer as he turned his anger towards the black haired skater, “What’s so special about you anyway? Your name? You don’t even look like you could run a full program without keeling over. How’d your skates even support you?”

“Yuri, that’s enough.” Viktor spoke, the cheer gone from his tone.

Yuri switched his attention back to the other Russian, his rage seeping through every single word he shouted, “Don’t ‘Yuri’ me, Viktor! What kind of guy runs off from his promises to go play coach to some random Japanese? Forget this and come back to Russia with me!” He yelled.

Yuuri had stopped hearing the other’s voice, his eyes falling to his shoes as his mind unwittingly absorbed the barbed words thrown at him. No, he really shouldn’t let the words get to him. It was only the words of some angry teenager, but his mind can’t help devouring it like poisoned water to a man dying of thirst.

Yuri said nothing that he hadn’t thought of before. But to hear it from someone else firmly reminded him of his situation and it just drove the figurative knife deeper.

His gaze narrowed, blackness dancing at the edges of his vision and everyone sounded like they were underwater, while his own breathing sounded much too loud in his ears. Was everyone suddenly here? Or was it all in his head?

_You’re a disappointment._

Oh, Makkachin was looking up at him, his whimper sounded muddled too. When did he get here? If a dog could express itself more humanly, he’d have thought the poodle was asking him if he was alright. Silly thoughts, dogs can’t do that.

He glanced up again to find Viktor shooting him a narrowed look. _Eh? What was that expression? Did he- was he starting to see the same thing as the other Yuri had seen in me?_ Yuuri thought. A voice in his mind whispered, _he probably is_.

That was good, right?

That meant he’d leave. Yuuri could go back to his job, his skating with Yuuko, bunking with Phichit and generally have a safe life in Hasetsu.

A lonely life, but a safe one.

Quietly, he took a step back. He took another step back and one more step before he finally spun around, running away from the Russian pair. The loud beating of his heart drowned out whatever words his earpiece was trying to send to his brain, focused too much on running away. He barely managed to stop from ramming straight into Phichit when the glass doors to the dormitory slid open.

“Yuuri! Hey, what’s going on?” The Thai Skater asked, surprise coloring his tone as Yuuri moved past him and made for the stairs in a brisk walk.

“Yuuri!”

He paused with a foot on the first step, shoulders shaking slightly. “I… I can’t. I’m sorry but not now.” Yuri blurted out, not turning to the other and began to ascend the stairs quickly. He heard footsteps behind him and turned to see the other following him.

“Phichit-kun, please.”

“You can tell me what’s going on. Or not tell me. I’m fine with either. But let me go with you.” The other said. Yuuri was inclined to insist on telling his friend to stay away but, in the end, he didn’t have the heart to. Wordlessly, he turned away and continued up to their room with a second pair of footsteps following close behind.

It wasn’t until Phichit closed the door behind him that Yuuri curled against the wall at the foot of his bed, holding his head in his hands with his knees brought up to his chin and letting the tears fall freely. He sobbed for a good while, not really knowing how long he was doing so. During his outpour of emotions, he sensed Phichit taking a seat beside him. No touching, no immediate words of comfort. He simply sat there and seemed to busy himself with his phone.

Yuuri calmed down eventually, the ugly noises he made ebbing away to a few hitches every now and then. He rested his chin on his knees, wrapping his arms around his thighs.

“Why am I even here? I don’t… I don’t understand why people are trying so hard to get me out there.” Yuuri mumbled. “I can’t skate. I can’t do anything the way everyone wants me to do it!”

Phichit laid his phone to the side and asked gently, “Is that what Viktor was trying to get you to do?”

Yuuri nodded shakily. “He said that. He wants to be my coach so I could go out there and… I feel so bad disappointing him.”

Phichit hummed, looking up at the ceiling lost in thought. “Do you like skating though? Just skating for skating?” Phichit asked him. Yuuri looked to the Thai Skater questioningly.

“I like skating.” Yuuri answered hesitantly.

“Do you skate because people tell you to skate?”

The bespectacled male shook his head before replying, “No. I skate because I love to… I just don’t like to skate with my life at risk.”

“But you’re also unhappy because, if you skate, you think people expect you to go a little further and become a Skater. So you avoid any topic that has anything to do with skating before it even begins. Is that it?”

“W-well… sort of like that…” Yuuri trailed off.

Phichit mulled the words over in his head, tapping a finger to his chin and at last let out an exhale. He flipped his position, so that his feet were against the wall and his upper half was lying on the carpeted floor.

“Then continue skating like you are doing now. You don’t need to sign up for the unit to be able to do what you love.”

“It’s not that simple…” Yuuri immediately protested, wiping the trailing tears with his sleeves. Phichit glanced at him with a slightly unimpressed look.

“Yuuri, you’ve been skating with Yuuko all this time. What did you think you were doing?”

“That’s just therapy.”

Phichit groaned dramatically. “Ahh, Yuuriiii. You know how lame that answer is. You don’t even believe it yourself.” Yuuri’s cheeks reddened slightly and he looked away. His friend was right in that one, at least. The Thai rolled onto his stomach and got up, taking his hamster plushie and an onigiri pillow from Yuuri’s bed, dropping the latter onto his friend who caught it.

“If it helps, I always thought there was something enchanting about the way you skate. I don’t know if anyone’s ever told you that, but I think at least one person has. If you think becoming one of us will stop you from skating as beautifully as you do when you skate with Yuuko, then I wouldn’t force you to make that decision. I’d rather have you be happy doing what you want to do.” Phichit beamed, settling back into his spot beside the other. “You might actually end up as dead as you think if you ever join out of a skewed sense of obligation!”

“… Phichit-kun, that isn’t helping!” Yuuri exclaimed.

The Thai Skater tilted his head. “It’s actually highly likely! That’s why, as a friend, I’m simply telling you what can happen as it is. So what if you can’t skate like the rest of us? At least you know what you want. You’re not the only one who stopped skating because of trauma. It would be sad and boring without you around.”

Being fed the story that Yuuri was an ex-Skater with no home to return to, Phichit had accepted that as the truth. While Yuuri was still feeling guilty over the deceit, it was easier playing along than trying to explain that he was older than he looked, amongst other things. He belatedly had a feeling that either way, his roommate would have accepted him, but it would complicate things if he said anything now.

“I guess you have a point.” Yuuri acquiesced. “But with Viktor here… it’s getting harder to say no.” Though who’s to say if Viktor’s actually going to stick around after the appearance of that Russian teenager a while ago? Yuuri decided not to get his hopes too high that a kid would be able to convince the Ice Emperor to return to his country.

“Have a little more faith in yourself, Yuuri.” Phichit patted his shoulder as he gently announced, “I’ll be behind you all the way.”

“Taking pictures of Viktor, no doubt.” Yuuri quipped.

Phichit rubbed the back of his head and chuckled before he admitted, “You caught me. It’s not every day you get a Skater like Viktor coming to your base. Speaking of Viktor...”

“What about Viktor?”

Phichit slapped his own cheeks and squealed, “He saw the video and decided cute Yuuri must need a coach to stop himself from hurting himself, didn’t he? I didn’t know you had that much of a charm! Wait, this sounds like a plot taken out of a princess story.”

Yuuri was almost afraid to ask. But he did anyway. “What kind of princess story would that be?”

Phichit even looked genuinely thoughtful about the question. He looked at the ceiling before answering, “Something about the luckiest girl in the whole kingdom getting the prince of her dreams, even though she thinks she’s a nobody. Oh, and she could be singing and thought she was awful because everyone else said so, but singing was her comfort and the prince happened to be passing by and thought it was beautiful and wanted to make her his bride.”

Yuuri groaned and then slid to the floor with dramatic gestures. “Phichit-kun, I’m dead. Dying.” He spoke in a stage whisper, “It’s the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever heard from you. Does your story have the prince come from a foreign kingdom, with hair the color of silver moonlight and eyes as enchanting as the ocean at rest?”

Phichit snickered and stood, posing with dramatic flair, “Of course! A prince of princes, sought far and wide by many yet charmed by none. He comes riding on a mighty purebred steed, hoping to save his bride-to-be from her lonely fate of counting toenail clippings and dusting the same spot day in and day out.” Phichit added cheekily. Both of them locked gazes for a moment before breaking into laughter. The conversation had become absurd but it was what Yuuri needed after the emotions of the past days. Once their laughter settled, Phichit was the first to speak.

“Was that a little too cheesy?” Phichit asked between puffs of breath. Yuuri shook his head, adjusting his glasses that had gone askew from his bout of laughter.

“That was the cheesiest thing I’ve ever heard you come up with.” He commented as dry as he could possibly say it in that moment.

“It could have existed, you know.” Phichit playfully defended. Maybe it had, maybe it didn’t. Yuuri appreciated what his friend had done either way and flashed the other a small, grateful smile.

“… Thank you for that. Even if I could make a pizza out of it.”

His roommate grinned and flashed him a peace sign. The mood had lightened in the room after that. Yuuri, feeling too lazy to get up, decided to stay where he was on the floor and simply curled up around his pillow. Phichit on the other hand, crawled over to reach his phone and sat against the foot of his bed, where he began to scroll through all of his social media posts. The silence that settled between them was occasionally broken by soft laughter from Phichit, or an amused snort from Yuuri in response to whatever his friend was laughing at. Slowly though, Yuuri’s eyelids felt heavy and he found himself drifting off.

“Yuuri.”

The Japanese youth opened his eyes and lazily looked over to where Phichit was scrolling through his phone. “Yeah, Phichit-kun?” He called out to the other. The Thai Skater looked up towards him.

“Hm? What is it, Yuuri-“

A blaring alarm startled both of them. Yuuri yelped in surprised as Phichit jumped to his feet, looking out the window as if expecting something out there that caused this sudden disturbance. There was a soft curse from him, and then he was suddenly by Yuuri’s side.

“Yuuri, get up. Come quick.” Phichit took his arm and helped him to his feet. Yuuri fumbled and accidentally kicked his pillow. The Thai skater didn’t waste time and tugged Yuuri’s hand, getting themselves to quickly put their shoes on and out of their room.

“What’s going on?” Yuuri asked, allowing the Thai skater to lead him out of the dormitory and towards the main building. Around him, all the other Artists and Skaters who had been in the building and the surrounding area were now briskly making their way to the same destination. There was a plethora of expressions on their faces. Excitement, nervousness, determination. Yuuri didn’t have time to name them all.

In front of him, Phichit hadn’t let go. “It’s coming.” The Thai answered above the din of the alarm and the voices mingling around them.

“What… It… H-here?” Yuuri paled. He felt a shiver go down his spine and quickened his pace to match Phichit’s. Of all the things that could happen, this was the worst case scenario.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally back on track with my writing deadlines (for now). Which also means following my default posting schedule (for now). So y'all getting the next chapter by 05/29 and then resuming a bi-weekly update after. Criticism and questions are much welcomed. Kudos also much appreciated!
> 
> Notes:  
> \- I am not an expert on foreign languages. I basically refer to Google Translate and various 'language for dummies' websites to get the phrases and sentences I need. If you happen to see any inaccuracy and are a fluent speaker of said language, please don't hesitate to correct me.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Yuri!!! on Ice and its affiliated characters in any shape or form. However, I reserve the right to own the story and the characters created for it.
> 
> A glimpse into the live action and the enemy Yuuri has only ever seen on recorded videos.

 

Hasetsu hasn’t seen an attack for the past five years.

In the absence of a threat, the town had slowly seen an increase in population from those who were moving in from the north. As a result, the population had grown somewhat complacent.

With the sudden blaring of the alarm, Yuuri couldn’t imagine the panic that might be happening outside of the base. That wasn’t a matter he had time to think on though, as he and Phichit were swept up in the urgency of getting to wherever it is that they must go.

They entered one of the main buildings, and followed the crowd. When the hallway intersected another, majority of the crowd split off into the adjacent one. In their haste, Yuuri saw a familiar flash of brown in his peripheral. He turned his head, seeing Romina running down a different hallway from theirs. He followed her movements through the glass windows before a wall blocked his sight.

Yuuri paused. “Where are they going?”

“Who?”

“Romina. I just saw…”

“Oh, the Artists? A different section of the building.” Phichit resumed walking, tugging Yuuri’s arm along. “C’mon Yuuri, we’re almost there.”

‘There’ was a large room that Yuuri had never seen before. It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie, with the walls in chrome gray and white lights lining the walls and ceiling. On one side of the room were rows of suspended metal rod racks, with hundreds of translucent jumpsuits hung on them. People scrambled to them and sifted through, finding one with their name on it and rushing to a different room with it in hand.

On the other side of the room from where they entered was a corridor that led to reinforced double doors. A pair of guards and two men in uniform were waiting and watching the rest of room getting ready.

“Yuuri, I need to get changed. Can you find Minako in the meantime?” Phichit asked him, looking with concern at his friend. “She should be here.”

“You’re going out there? But you just got back from Tokyo.” Yuuri asked disbelievingly.

“Heh. A Skater’s work is never done.” Phichit smiled. “I have the choice to stay here but I can’t sit by while my friends are out having all the fun. Besides, in groups, it’s easier to get the fight over and done with.”

Fun? Yuuri couldn’t see how endangering one’s life could be considered fun. He respected Phichit’s enthusiasm at least, and didn’t argue further. But it still didn’t stop him from worrying about his friend. Reluctantly, he nodded and watched Phichit grab his own jumpsuit and disappeared into the other room.

Now alone, amidst the people who should have been his fellow peers, he felt out of place. He saw eyes glancing his way and he tried not to put a voice to the thoughts that he suspected might be running through their minds.

Anxiety rising, he quickly moved himself to the sides, away from the center and nearer to some seats and scoured the room for Minako. The other Keepers were here, some he knew in passing, but he didn’t see the familiar face of the brunette.

So many people. Even if the number of qualified Skaters on base could only be counted on three and a half hands, that was still a lot of people to be put together in one room, along with their Keepers.

He also wondered what became of the Russian duo. He’d left them outside and hadn’t seen them since. Where had they gone?

“What the hell is he doing here?”

Yuuri jumped at the glowering voice near him. Speak of the devil.

He found the other Yuri glaring at him. The teen wore a reddish translucent jumpsuit and behind him was Viktor adjusting the suit’s strap at the neck.

Viktor clicked his tongue. “Yuri, this isn’t the time for that. Hold still.” He said. The blonde Yuri gave the Japanese Yuuri one last glower before looking away and acquiescing to the request. Something wet rubbed against his hand and he briefly looked down, seeing Makkachin licking his hand. The dog wagged its tail at him, looking at him with bright beady eyes. In this kind of situation, Yuuri supposes a dog had it easy.

Yuuri gave Makkachin a quick pat then looked again at the Russian duo. It was odd for Yuuri to see the blonde teenager acting docile when earlier he’d been throwing what had been a hissy fit at the older Russian. He decided against asking but there was something else on his mind.

“You’re also going out there?” Yuuri blurted out.

Yuri sneered at him. “Is that even a question, you moron? What? You think because I’m not here on official business I’ll be lounging on a couch somewhere watching everything on a screen?”

“It’s the duty of every Skater, Katsuki-san.” Viktor casually explained, derailing Yuri’s building momentum. “Given the opportunity to fight, we will. We protect the people, and each other out on the field. At least, that’s the basic obligation of a Skater. Now Yuri, make sure to check your skates before you go.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know.” The blonde snapped. He stayed still long enough for Viktor to give him one last glance over and with a pat on the shoulder from the older man, he moved away. The teen manipulated a button on the small gear attached to his arm and the jumpsuit shimmered.

Before Yuuri’s widening eyes, the jumpsuit was replaced with a white button down shirt with frills around the neck and black suspenders held up a pair of form fitting black slacks. Yuri paid no heed to Yuuri’s awestruck look, nor did he turn back to glance at Viktor as he joined the other Skaters converging at the other hallway. Once the teen was out of earshot, Yuuri turned to look at Viktor, catching him staring thoughtfully at the young blonde’s receding back.

“Viktor, you’re not going to join them?” He asked. The silver haired Russian tilted his head towards him, silver bangs falling over his left eye with the movement.

“I’m off active duty, Katsuki-san. Even I sometimes listen to direct orders.” He answered with a light chuckle at the end. Yuuri nodded his head. He supposed it must be a heavy reason if his superiors refused to have Viktor out there with the rest.

_It must be hard_. Yuuri thought.

The room was abuzz with activity as Skaters ran about making the last preparations before being deployed, their Keepers keeping an eye out for them and reminding the stragglers to pick up the pace.

Sure there was the underlying anxiety, but being amidst the activity and charged atmosphere, Yuuri could admit feeling the excitement affecting him as well.

What would it feel like to be out there skating? Fighting against a fog like entity was rather strange to think about still, but it doesn’t shake the idea that being allowed to perform to your utmost best out there gave a man a sense of great purpose.

His mind wondered if he had the courage to take up skating with Yuuko, would he be able to take the next step? Would he be able to overcome his fear while out under the open sky and nothing but his own physical limitations as the only hindrances? It was possible. _Anything_ was possible _._ But he was still plagued with indecision and the fear that he would mess up his first sortie. Anything could go _wrong_ in a matter of seconds. He didn’t want to become a burden to anyone else.

“Katsuki-san.”

Yuuri jolted out of his thoughts and glanced at Viktor. “Yes?” He asked.

Viktor had his brows furrowed and his lips downturned into a small frown. “Are you alright?” He asked him.

Was this from earlier? Likely so. Yuuri breathed slowly, trying to piece together a reply that didn’t sound offensive. Viktor had been respectful of his privacy, had been nothing but kind in their brief interactions even if he sometimes couldn’t get the message. He sighed and answered, “It’s nothing, really. But thank you for the concern.”

It was at that time that Phichit stepped out of the room, not in a translucent jumpsuit, but in a dazzling suit of bright red with gold trimmings and black accents. He’d recognized it to be the Thai’s trademark outfit from his most popular performance, skating to a song from a play that existed in his time. He knew it was only a projected image of a costume, but he can’t help but be amazed like he had been with Yuri’s.

He’d forgotten about Viktor in that moment and approached the Thai Skater, looking bright eyed.

“That’s… that’s really amazing tech.” Yuuri breathed.

His friend chuckled. “I know right? Five years and I still can’t get over how awesome these holosuits are.” Phichit beamed, spinning around and showing his costume off for Yuuri. A shout from a keeper from the other end of the hall made him stop. “Duty calls. Hey Yuuri, will you be watching my performance?”

There was nothing wrong with that. “Of course.” Yuuri smiled.

“Great! I’ll give you a really great show. Also…”

“Yes?”

Phichit pulled Yuuri aside and whispered. “Get me a photo of Viktor. Or a selfie. Yeah, any would do. He’s been looking at you a lot, so I -think- you can get away with a request.”

Yuuri mustered the driest look he can possibly give Phichit. “I… can’t promise that, but I can try…?”

“That’s the spirit, Yuuri. You’re already learning!” The Thai laughed and patted his friend’s back. He gave Yuuri a thumbs up before moving off to join the rest. The Keepers followed them into the hall, and the room became mostly empty.

Someone burst into the room from the entrance, garnering his attention and immediately recognized the new arrival.

“Yuuri!”

“Minako-sensei!” Yuuri exclaimed and ran to meet her halfway. She bent and held onto her thighs, panting and gasping for breath. “Uh… Minako-sensei, are you okay?”

“I’m glad I found you. I thought you were still at work or in the dorms.” She gasped between breaths, “Damn it, I’m not old yet!”

“It’s fine. Phichit brought me here.” Yuuri replied, ignoring her small outburst. “Uhm, Minako-sensei. Where am I supposed to go? I promised Phichit I’d watch him.”

Minako took another moment to calm herself down and slowly stood. “Right. Come on, we’ll go to the command center and see if we can get you and Viktor front row seats.” Minako gestured for both of them to follow. Yuuri glanced at the Russian, who flashed him a tiny smile in return. His heart skip a beat and he quickly looked away.

_Stop that._ He mentally told himself. He followed Minako out of the room, and he swore he heard Viktor laughing softly behind him. He elected to keep from looking back at the Russian because at this rate, he’d probably say something stupid again. He can only handle so many embarrassing outbursts in one lifetime.

“So what’d you think about the Skaters? Pretty cool huh?” The brunette Keeper asked Yuuri.

“I guess they are. Cool, I mean. The jumpsuits are better than I imagined them to be.” Yuuri replied. “It’s giving me a real idea about all the importance of this kind of work, instead of just watching it all through videos and reading about it.”

“Ah, so you’ve never had actual field experience, Katsuki-san?” Viktor spoke from behind them. Yuuri’s mind momentarily froze, and he belatedly realized that Viktor probably thought he was an invalid ex-Skater like everyone else had been led to believe.

To say that he had only realized what Phichit and the others took as a serious job implied that he hadn’t been one at all.

His hand came up to finger his glasses nervously. “Well I, uh…” He stuttered, his mind drawing up a blank on what to actually say. “I-”

“What Yuuri is trying to say is that it’s been a while since he had been out on the field.” Minako smoothly lied. “So he’s forgotten what it’s felt like to be on active duty, aside from what the trauma did to him. He’s prone to forgetting certain things.”

“Is that so?” Viktor replied with a tone Yuuri couldn’t quite describe. Yuuri refused to glance behind him. “It must be hard to be sitting on the side while your friends are out there. I’m sorry for asking then, Katsuki-san.”

“Y-yeah! It is. Yeah… Uh, please don’t be sorry. It’s my fault anyway…” Yuuri trailed off. The trio kept walking, though Yuuri’s palms were getting clammy and he was internally swearing for slipping up. So much for trying to avoid embarrassing himself.

_Please, Yuuri. Maybe you should just have your mouth stitched up and eat katsudon through a straw._ He internally wept. He could even sense Minako eyeing him like he should really just stop talking now.

“Don’t be.” He heard Viktor’s reply. “Accidents happen and the fog is a cruel enemy. At least you came away with your sanity intact, yes?”

Yuuri shuddered at the thought of losing his mind. That wasn’t a nice ending at all.

“Yeah…” he muttered.

They continued to walk in silence after that. None of them wanted to ask questions. And Yuuri was afraid of slipping up again.

He understood that him being something of a living relic was already a head-turning topic. Secret to youth, immortality. The fanatics would have a field day with that and wouldn’t think twice about doing more than just interviews with him if word got out. The government protected him from every outsider who would take interest in him, but it can’t protect him from itself or from people who worked double lives. He’d learned enough from his time that such outlandish movie ideas actually had real life basis.

_Trust no one._ As the quote goes. But he can’t bring himself to completely shut away or doubt the people who have been there for him all this time. He can’t bring himself to not care.

Phichit was out there with the others. Prior to this day, he would have thought nothing of it. But with the fog so close, the danger felt real, _too real_ and it was his friend throwing himself out there to face it with so many others.

If anything happened to him, he wouldn’t know how to live with himself. Blame himself perhaps, like he’d always done. And to be honest, it was getting tiresome falling back to the same old routine.

The trio plus dog arrived outside a pair of reinforced doors. Minako told them to wait while she punched in a code and allowed herself in. There was an occasional running employee going up and down the hallway, so Yuuri didn’t feel completely alone with the Russian.

Makkachin whined and bumped his head against Yuuri’s hand, meeting his gaze imploringly with its beady eyes. The Japanese youth melted and knelt to its eye level, giving the brown poodle a lot of ruffling. He may be Viktor’s dog, but Makkachin made its own choices and Yuuri was powerless to refuse a dog when it wants something.

He briefly remembered Vicchan, and he dropped his gaze to the floor. He’d always assumed that his family took care of him until the end, but it didn’t stop the guilt he felt for leaving him behind. Leaving everyone behind.

The doors opened as Yuuri stood. In front of them, Minako spoke, “So we’re not allowed in there, but we can use one of the conference rooms over there and watch.” She gestured to a room on the far right.

Entering the room, Yuuri found it to be smaller than he assumed it would be. There was a small circular table and a handful of chairs. The walls were a plain blue grey with the floor covered with a greyish carpet.

Minako took a seat at the head and began to log into the terminal embedded into the table. The holographic interface in the center of the table sprang to life, displaying a quick welcome screen before it disappeared and Minako was bringing up multiple screens.

Meanwhile Yuuri and Viktor had taken a seat, with Yuuri finding himself glancing at Viktor who sat across from him. The silver-haired man’s gaze was fixated on the screen with a finger tapping lightly against his chin. Yuuri supposes it’s a quirk the older man has when he was thinking, not that he minded.

“You guys are lucky. I don’t have a Skater out there, so we get to look at everyone from here.” Minako spoke up, breaking the silence of the room. With a flourish, a multitude of screens appeared on the holographic surface, each showing a different Skater in focus.

“If you want to enlarge it, just select the screen and flick your fingers like this.” Minako gestured to both of them.

The screens showed the Skaters who were seated on a capsule shaped shuttle taking them to the north end of the base. It looked like they were moving swiftly through an underground tunnel, not a word passing amongst them as they each had various expressions on their faces. Some looked nervous, others looked excited while the likes of Phichit looked neutral but the fire in their eyes said something else entirely.

Viktor enlarged a screen on his side, big enough that Yuuri could see that it showed the blonde Yuri. He was seated in the front row with his feet propped up on the bar in front of him. And he looked incredibly bored.

On his feet, he wore what looked like ankle length boots made from a kind of black material that didn’t look quite leather or any fabric he could name. The soles and lines that ran at the front and back of the footwear shone with a soft light blue glow.

Yuuri opened his mouth to voice his question, but quickly shut it when he remembered it might not be best to have Viktor suspect him more. Instead he leaned as close as he could to Minako and whispered. “Boots? I thought they’d be skates.”

Minako changed her screen to that of Yuri’s and squinted at it. She shook her head and leaned close to whisper as soft as she could. “They are skates, Yuuri. Just not the kind you use for everyday practice. But… hmm…” She trailed off and suddenly clapped her hands.

“Those are state-of-the-art Nouveau™ skates. I can’t get a clear shot, but it might be a new model still not in distribution.” Awe colored Minako’s words, spoken at normal volume. She glanced at Viktor and whistled, “You Russians get to play with the nice toys first.”

Viktor let out a laugh, clear and honest. The pleasant sound of it made Yuuri’s cheeks redden. “Well, the Russian military wants the best for their best.” He remarked. Placing a finger to his chin, he added. “You should have seen the jumpsuits they were working on before I left. The tech may not be ours, but it’s still an amazing prototype.”

“Oh? Do tell. What’s the upgrade this time?” Yuuri noticed Minako was going into her ‘geek’ mode. It was unusual for him to see this side of her, mostly because he hadn’t known about it until he started asking her about the special equipment the Skaters used. It was the biggest info dump he’d ever recalled experiencing, and not something he would willingly do again.

“Better heat insulation. There’s rumors going around that it could withstand below ten degrees for prolonged periods but that’s just rumors until it’s been tested.” Viktor replied, surprisingly matching Minako’s fervor. “The tech’s being sent to China for another round of testing before it can be deemed ready for distribution. And the holo-tech is getting interesting major patch upgrades too.”

“Like?”

“Bigger memory for more elaborate costumes, or up to five chips. Then an improved Switch system that allows for easier switching between installed costumes. No overheating or prolonged load time.”

Minako let out a string of impressed ‘ooh’s’. “And I thought that wouldn’t be out until late next year. You know how to get a girl excited, don’t you?” She teased.

Viktor let out a low hum, smiling thoughtfully. “It only works if they are interested.” He winked. That was enough to slay Minako and Yuuri, the latter at least being able to control his reaction with covering his mouth and pretending to cough. Minako though, she was squealing like Christmas had come early.

The excitement quickly died down when on screen, the shuttle had arrived at its destination and everyone filed out, already adorned in their chosen costumes. They’ve stopped at a large field, just outside the city borders. The pods recording floated behind their respective Skaters while a second shuttle arrived behind them, carrying their Keepers though they kept their distance to only as far as the vehicles. Yuuri watched as the Skaters were given something -a bracelet?- and they immediately wore them. He even saw the Russian Yuri take one for himself.

If he’d read something about them before, he can’t recall it at the moment. He’ll need to ask Minako at a later time.

“Minako-sensei, I can’t hear anything.” Yuuri commented.

“The winds are picking up in their area. I doubt that even if we did turn it on, we’d be able to hear anything clear enough.” The brunette Keeper answered. “We can tap into the playlist for Phichit when they start though.”

That sounds about alright. Yuuri nodded and began to look at other screens instead of just his friend’s. Beside him, he suddenly heard a sharp intake of breath.

“Do you see that?” Minako whispered beside him. Yuuri’s eyes were fixated on the large screen before them, squinting at where his Keeper was pointing.

It started out as a strange tiny object in the distance, but as the pod’s lenses focused on the object, Yuuri’s eyes widened and he swallowed hard.

It was one thing to see a dark looming lump the height of three male adults on a recorded video. But once he’d seen on live camera that the enemy was slightly larger than the surrounding trees, Yuuri felt the color drain from his cheeks. It looked every bit like fog, but the dark translucent, roiling clouds that made up its body sent chills up his spine. The way it sluggishly moved without a care of who or what was in its way reminded Yuuri of an unstoppable monster crawling its way towards its target, and that really wasn’t far from the truth. The trees bent as if a strong gust of wind was passing by, though Yuuri couldn’t tell anything else from the vantage point offered by the pod.

And to think, a human making contact with a tangible wisp of it could lose their minds in mere minutes.

“That’s… that thing’s huge!” Yuuri exclaimed.

“It is big.” Viktor agreed. “This one had time to gather while on its way here.”

How on Earth were Phichit and the others going to fight against that thing?! Yuuri shook in his seat. This fog, it was going to eat them alive. This was a death sentence with no escape. How did anyone ever muster the courage to walk out there and risk their lives to drive something that could grow to this size?

Forming, Viktor had said. This thing could gather its individual parts and become this big, unstoppable terror that only knew how to destroy.

_Don’t look. Oh please, please don’t look._

It devoured everything and gave nothing back. Left nothing behind.

_I can’t… y-_

Sorrow and fear were the only things left in its wake.

_I can’t breathe._

“Hey, Yuuri. Yuuri! Calm down.” Minako said, gripping his shoulder. The solid warmth grounded him to the present. He forced himself to take in a shaky breath and forcefully expelled it again. His Keeper kept talking to him in a low, steady voice, allowing him to grasp onto her voice like a lifeline as he slowly came back to himself.

Not good. He almost had a panic attack there. Minako had been ready this time too, rubbing his back and holding his hand with the other. When had he taken her hand? He didn’t think much about it.

“Alright? Maybe we should-”

“No.” Yuuri wheezed out. He took a moment to reorient himself then looked at Minako. “I’m fine… I’m fine. Please let me watch Phichit.” He half-spoke, half-begged to his Keeper. The brunette fixed him with a heavy look and reluctantly allowed him to do so, keeping the screens up as Yuuri steadied himself. A shift of movement from Viktor made Yuuri look and he found Viktor’s brows furrowed, alarmed concern on his face.

“Katsuki-san, are you sure?” Viktor was the one to ask him gently.

Yuuri shook his head, trying to fix a smile on his face and managing. “It’s just a minor episode. Besides, better to face it head on where I can, right?”

The other Skater offered no reply, though he gave Yuuri one last look before he turned his attention to the Yuri on screen. The Skaters had begun to move and the two started to pay attention to the screens.

The footwear he first mistook as mere boots appeared to be specialized skates of technology unknown to him. The Skaters began to move forward towards the approaching fog, skating over the ground as if it were ice.

_Amazing._ Yuuri thought, keeping his eyes on his Thai friend. Phichit had a little smile on his face, the same one Yuuri always saw on his friend’s face whenever he was on the ice, or when he was doing something he particularly loved. Yuuri felt envious of such courage, even when the Skater was possibly approaching his last moments.

_No, no. Don’t think like that, Yuuri. Phichit’s coming home and you’ll be there to tell him he did a great job._ He told himself.

The group drew nearer to the fog. The expressions on the Skaters shifted and several broke off from the rest, spreading out and standing still as the front group continued on.

“Ten seconds to first contact.” He wasn’t sure who spoke. His eyes were intent on capturing the first moment of the fight. Minako fiddled with something on the interface and Yuuri began to hear the first lines of Phichit’s iconic “Shall We Skate” wafting from the speakers.

4…

3…

2…

1-!

The screens erupted in a brilliant clash of bluish white against black as the cymbals clashed and the music entered with the staccato piano notes and steady rhythm of an accompanying percussion.

The fog recoiled, as if it were a solid mass pierced by multiple sharp objects. The Skaters on the frontlines were relentless. Yuuri’s eyes saw how the fog parted where they skated, recoiling from an invisible force surrounding each and everyone one of them. This force ripped away at the fog like fangs and claws tearing into prey, daggers and swords stabbing into an enemy’s body.

Phichit was one of those on the frontlines, completing a step sequence with flair and a brilliant smile. If Yuuri could ignore the darkness being ripped around him into ribbons, he would have imagined it to be a beautiful performance for a competition as large as the Worlds.

He would have loved to have competed with Phichit on the same ice, had his friend been born in his time.

“Triple toe, single flip, double toe, step sequence… Your friend has a good grasp on his routine but not enough remarkable jumps. His technique needs to improve if he’s ever thinking about working as a solo skater.” Viktor’s commentary made him look at the Russian. “But he has the energy and spirit to make up for it. That’s a strong point for him.”

“T-thank you.” Yuuri said, feeling a fluttering feeling in his chest at the praise for his friend. He was sure Phichit would be beside himself if he knew their common idol had said such words about his performance.

Yuuri decided to switch to watching the Russian Yuri. Enlarging the screen that followed his movements, all Yuuri could do for the first second was to gape.

Yuri was a demon out there. The teen was relentlessly skating and tearing into the fog like a rabid tiger, moving onto the next thick part as soon as the one he was attacking was torn up into shreds left in his wake. He was at the head of the group, the spearhead that drove deep into the fog and wreaking havoc in his wake.

“Y… Yuri is really breaking it.” Yuuri said aloud.

“An angry kitten, to be sure.” Viktor said, sounding amused. He didn’t bother to explain and simply kept watched, oftentimes flicking to a different screen but checking back on Yuri every now and then. Yuuri himself was too busy watching Phichit continue to carve through the darkness like a blade through butter.

For the next five minutes, they continued to watch with rapt attention. The second group of Skaters picked off the chunks of fog that had broken off from the crumbling mass, destroying them with their own performances.

The fog seemed to writhe as its body disintegrated, attempting to lash out in its ‘death throes’ with what remained of itself but failing to do much harm. As Phichit’s song ended on its final note, his friend struck a pose and disintegrated the last of the fog around him. The other frontliners followed suit, and soon the field was cleared of the threat.

“And that’s the end of it for now.” Minako said with a grin.

“Wait, really? They just let it disappear? Were there any casualties?” Yuuri asked worriedly.

“Doesn’t look like it. And don’t worry. It’s harmless when you can’t see it. It should take a long while before it starts to gather again.” Minako answered. She looked just as relieved as Yuuri felt. It was something else watching a fight live, like taking a ride on a rollercoaster without the assurance that everyone would make it to the end safely. The bespectacled young man sagged into his chair and rubbed his face.

“Phichit’s coming back.” He could hear the relief in his own voice. “Phichit’s coming back!”

Minako smiled at him and ruffled his head. “Right well,” She quickly logged out of the holo-interface, causing the screens to disappear. “I’ll just go right ahead and have a quick talk with command. You and Viktor can just wait outside in the hall for me.”

Yuuri acknowledged her with a quick affirmation. The door closed behind the brunette just as Yuuri stood up and pushed back the seat into the table. He was about to make his way to the door when Viktor suddenly spoke up, reminding him that he wasn’t alone in the room.

“Katsuki-san.”

“Yes?” Yuuri turned to look at the man.

The mirth in Viktor’s eyes was still there, but there was a hardness to his gaze as he regarded Yuuri with something unreadable.

“I know you think that I was ordered to somehow convince you to return to active duty. I’ll say this now: No one asked me to do so.” Viktor said. He paused momentarily then continued. “I’m being honest when I say I am willing to become your skating coach.”

This again, but somehow it sounded less insistent this time. The first instinct Yuuri had was to get out of the room and follow after Minako without saying a word to Viktor. But he stopped himself.

He thought about his recent behavior and the things that were told to him, or the lack thereof. He’s tired of being left in the dark. There were too many questions he allowed to be left unanswered, and he disliked feeling helpless and at the mercy of others. Asking Viktor now wouldn’t have any real consequences for him except for his own view towards his idol changing, depending on what he answers.

He stared up at Viktor, his mind racing as he tried to decide if this was really a good idea. Finally, his shoulders deflated.

You only live once, right?

“Then why, Viktor?” He asked the man.

Viktor blinked. “Why?”

“Why are you doing this for me? What is it about… me, that made you come all the way out here?” Yuuri asked, clenching his fists and fighting the urge to break eye contact. “Is it because you saw me skating to your performance? Was it that… that bad that you took pity on me and you had to come and rectify it?”

Viktor’s eyes widened a fraction, making a small noise and looking taken aback.

“No. It’s not about pity.” The Russian answered. He looked away, and rubbed the back of his neck. Was he nervous? He’s never seen Viktor be _nervous_.

“Would you believe me if I said, it’s because of a promise I made?” Viktor met his gaze, dropping any cheerful tone and giving Yuuri a serious look. It was intimidating in a way, but Yuuri didn’t find it at all out of place. He’d always imagined Viktor to be like this until that day at the dorms.

But that was a thought for a different time. “A promise? With who?” Yuuri asked. Who else would know about him? And how did they know him? As the guise that he wore? Or as the real person who was hiding underneath?

“With you.”

Viktor said the words with no hesitation.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! The next scheduled chapter release is on 06/12. That's Independence Day over here, but more just a long weekend. Again, if you see any mistakes, let me know.
> 
> Had a little interesting argument with myself while writing this chapter (and also during the initial worldbuilding) and the sum of it is this: 'If you ask me, why bother with the fancy getup when you’re just going to fight? Well, if you can answer why the Macross franchise has their songstress characters dress up in fancy clothes when all they do is just stand and sing, then you’d pretty much just answered your own question.'
> 
> I really like arguing with myself, hah.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-battle munchies and the art of misunderstanding.

 

Neither of them dared move a muscle, or look away from each other. A long stretch of silence fell between them as Yuuri was quietly thinking over those two words with a calmness part of himself found strange.

He can’t recall having gone to Russia. Sleepwalking was stupidly impossible for him to do, being literally immobile for the past eighty years. There were surveillance videos and reports to prove his point, if he’d ask. Morooka even said as much that he hadn’t shown any signs of stirring until last year. He had his doubts, sure, but what was the possibility that their secrets involved Viktor?

What about during the time he was awake? He may not remember everything with clarity, but he was sure the farthest he’d gone was the city borders. He hadn’t even so much as stood on a plane this whole time.

Dating sites? Highly doubt it. Social media? He can count the number of friends on Facebook on two hands. Every other account only had Phichit and the Hashigori family as his friends, and he was just one love amongst thousands on any of the photos he enjoyed.

That left him with only one conclusion at this moment.

“Viktor… I was hoping for a serious answer.” Yuuri spoke blandly, making the effort to look unimpressed if this was his idea of a joke. Maybe it had been his idea to lighten the mood? Flirt? Either way, this was a bad time for any of that.

“I’m trying to give you a proper answer, because you’re someone I look up to and it’s just impolite to not do so.” Yuuri admitted, “I appreciate that you took the time to come here for me, even though it’s completely out of the blue, but I can’t understand why you’re making this difficult for me. All I’m asking is a serious, honest answer.”

There, he’d said his piece. Maybe this time Viktor would get his point and hopefully answer his question truthfully.

“Ah… So is that what you think?” Viktor sounded awfully dejected. The Russian had shifted his gaze away, his lips were downturned into a small frown. He looked unhappy, miserable even.

Yuuri’s eyes widened from behind his glasses. That… that wasn’t a reaction he was expecting. Damn, shouldn’t HE be the one feeling miserable here?

“V-Viktor, wait. I’m not… mad at you.” Yuuri stuttered, “Look I just don’t understand how you’d make a promise I never recalled making. I mean, I just MET you a few days ago.”

“… That’s true.” The Russian agreed, still sounding dejected. “But I made that promise to help you get better. After seeing how badly you flopped my performance, and how obese you are for an ex-Skater, I just had to try and do something.”

_Well thanks a lot for the blunt commentary, Viktor._ Yuuri thought dryly, but it made him feel slightly better that it wasn’t being sugarcoated.

“Wait so… you mean, it was a promise to yourself that you would help me improve by coaching me?” Yuuri asked.

Viktor nodded as he replied, “Something like that, yes. Why? Did the words come out differently for you?”

That gave him pause. Was this a mistranslation on the part of the earpieces? It’s happened a few times before. Yuuri wouldn’t put it past the tech’s limitations. So he must have meant that, exactly that. Viktor had promised himself to help Yuuri, and by whatever way of thinking Viktor has, it meant promising Yuuri too.

There weren’t enough words in the world to express the great shame he felt for accusing the other for lying.

“I… I’m sorry. So sorry for the misunderstanding.” Yuuri apologized. He stared hard into the carpet, willing himself to melt into it and just disappear. What else was he going to do to make Viktor further dislike him? Whatever it is, it’s probably going to be the deal breaker that sends Viktor not only packing, but also leaving with a poor image of him, if this didn’t already.

A hand reached out and patted his shoulder, causing Yuuri’s heart to almost jump out of his chest. “It happens sometimes, Katsuki-san. It’s not your fault.” Viktor said. He was so patient, almost a saint. Yuuri had no words to reply to him, feeling too upset with himself to. He might start crying if he tried as well, so this heavy silence was better.

“I think we need to go. Let’s go greet the others, yes?” Viktor’s tone turned to something more upbeat and he squeezed Yuuri’s shoulder comfortingly before letting his hand fall back to his side. “Your friend must be waiting.”

“Ah, Phichit-kun. Right.” Yuuri replied numbly. Would Phichit mind if he greeted him back at their room instead? He considered the option, then told himself no. _Don’t drag your friend into this more than you have already._

He followed Viktor out of the room, Makkachin at Viktor’s side. There were more people out in the hallway with the threat now passed, but they were busy and paid neither of them any attention.

Staring at the broad back of the Russian, Yuuri replayed their conversation in his head. Viktor, despite being not what Yuuri thought he was, was still far from being a bad person. He used to skate out there alone, fighting to protect people and other Skaters alike. Yuuri could only imagine the great burden he placed on himself to take up such a task. He had a choice not to, but he did anyway. Just like Phichit had said that Yuuri had the choice to join, or not.

Being human was so difficult sometimes.

“You guys sure took your time in there.” Minako commented with nonchalance when they met her at the end of the hallway. Neither of them gave her an answer, nor did Minako press them for one. The Keeper briskly led them to where the Skaters are herded off to be checked for fog residue. Thankfully, it was in the same building where they had prepared for the fight, and so Yuuri and Viktor simply waited out in the wide hall as the fighters slowly filed out of the room beside them. Minako stood a little ways away, speaking to another Keeper.

The dark-haired young man looked up at the ceiling. “Hey, Viktor?” He spoke timidly.

Viktor offered him a side glance. “What is it?”

“I’ll think about it, alright?” Yuuri spoke as he shifted his gaze to watch each Skater who passed them. “I still can’t decide.”

There was a moment’s pause before he heard Viktor’s reply. “It’s still an answer. So thank you for it, Katsuki-san.” He could hear the smile in the Russian’s words and felt his cheeks redden slightly. He really didn’t know why even a small thank you from the man made his heart skip a beat. Then again, he wasn’t the only one who was affected by Viktor’s seemingly endless charm.

“Yuuri!”

The bespectacled young man only had a moment to turn before he was met with a tackle hug from the exuberant Thai. “Yuuri, did you see my performance?” Phichit was quick to ask.

“I did. It was really good.” Yuuri replied and Phichit’s eyes shone happily. He was back in his civilian clothes and clutching Yuuri still.

“Really? I’m so happy! I was really nervous out there, but in the end everything turned out great.” Phichit gushed. He then glanced at Viktor and his smile became larger. He then added in a whisper, “Yuuri, Yuuri. Introduce me!”

“Wh- Eh? But you know him already.” Yuuri flustered, whispering back.

“I know but, just introduce me.” Phichit replied and removed himself from Yuuri’s space. Yuuri sighed inwardly and adjusted his glasses nervously before he faced the mildly amused Viktor.

“Uh… Viktor. This is Phichit, my roommate and best friend.” Yuuri started, gesturing to the Thai beside him. Phichit waved exuberantly at Viktor, whose smile turned a little more relaxed.

“Viktor Nikiforov. It’s nice to meet a friend of Katsuki-san’s.” The Russian replied. He held out a hand which Phichit gladly took. To say that Phichit looked through the roof with happiness was a severe understatement.

_He probably needs a camera right now._ Yuuri thought as the Russian and the Thai continued to converse. _Correction, he’s regretting not having his phone._

Minako approached Yuuri and placed her arm around his shoulders, smiling at him.

“Getting buddy-buddy with Viktor, Yuuri? You’ve even introduced your best friend to him now.” Minako said in a low voice to him while she watched Phichit flush at Viktor’s critic of him.

“I guess.” Yuuri replied. “We just set some things straight, that’s all.”

Minako straightened up and patted his back. “That’s a good start. Ah, by the way, Takeshi’s coming to meet us here. Says he wants to have a look at you.”

“Isn’t he with the triplets?”

“The kids are safe at a relative’s place and Yuuko’s heading to them. The couple was here when the attack happened, so he wants to take a look at you before going home.” Minako answered just as the Russian Yuri walked out of the room in his civilian clothes again.

“I’m done here, Viktor. Let’s go home.” Yuri grumbled aloud, hands in his pockets and his hood up again. Behind him was his large suitcase, which Yuuri now noticed to have stickers of all sorts of cats on it. Viktor tilted his head at the blonde teen with his brows lightly furrowed.

“Yuratchka, you weren’t on orders from Yakov to bring me home.” Viktor half-pouted before asking, “Did you check your phone by the way?”

Yuri snorted. “Che. It’s just Yakov. And stop changing the subject.”

“Still not convincing me to go back, Yuri.” Viktor said in a singsong tone, “You know a rink is still a rink wherever it is.”

“You saying that I have to tolerate standing around in this hovel? Especially with that guy around?” Yuri gritted out, glancing at Yuuri who unconsciously took a step behind Minako.

Viktor crossed his arms and sighed. “We’ve been over this, Yuri. I promised I’d coach you, but I didn’t specify where. This should be a good place as any.”

From behind his Keeper, Yuuri watched as the other Yuri looked increasingly put off. He looked ready to blow some steam off, but at the last second sucked in a harsh breath and looked away.

“I hate you so much, Viktor.” He spoke, sounding grudgingly defeated. Unperturbed, Viktor beamed and clapped his hands.

“Well, now that we’re all calmed down, let’s go eat out!” Viktor suggested excitedly.

“Eat out?” Yuuri ventured to ask.

Viktor beamed and explained, “I saw this interesting looking food place on my way back earlier. But I thought, why not eat together with someone? And there’s a lot of us now so why not have dinner together?”

“Oh? That sounds great. I could use a drink after all this.” Minako agreed.

“Ah! I’d like that too, if Yuuri is coming.” Phichit threw in his agreement, looking at Yuuri with an almost pleading look. Yuuri looked at the number of people now looking at him with expectant -and in the case of Yuri, burning- gazes.

He wasn’t getting out of this at all. “I… okay.” He mumbled weakly.

_It’s alright, Yuuri. Just one dinner. You can avoid doing something crazy for just one night, right?_ He tried to tell himself and found he’d sooner be surprised if nothing weird happens until they got back. Phichit had quickly excused himself to get his wallet and phone, and Takeshi had arrived while they were waiting for Phichit to return.

“You mind if Yuuri and I speak for a minute?” Takeshi looked to both Minako and Viktor. Both told him that there was no problem, so Takeshi led Yuuri further down the hall to a bench and gestured for Yuuri to sit.

“I just needed to check on you after that little surprise.” The older man said as he settled himself beside Yuuri.

“I’m fine, Takeshi. Just ran into a little problem before we watched the fight on screen, but it was nothing bad. Minako was there to help calm me down.” Yuuri confessed.

Takeshi fixed him with a concerned stare. “Is that all, Yuuri?” He asked and Yuuri considered the other event that happened earlier on.

No, not yet. He wasn’t about to tell him about that breakdown in front of Phichit, so Yuuri shook his head and answered, “That’s all. It’s just a lot to take in, especially with the fog coming in and all. I’ve… never seen anything like it.”

Takeshi crossed his arms and hummed. “That’s for sure. I haven’t been scared like that since Yuuko and I were fresh faces on the base. Nothing like a fog warning to remind you of all the loved ones you have and aren’t with you.” The doctor stood and ruffled Yuuri’s hair gently. “Alright, you can go back to your friends. Don’t hesitate to contact me or Yuuko when you need something, alright?”

Yuuri nodded. “Sure I’ll keep that in mind.” He said.

“Also, expect Yuuko to grill you the next time you guys meet up.” Takeshi added with a smug grin, “She’s going to want to know how you managed to snag yourself your Russian celebrity crush.” Yuuri sighed as he stood up.

“I’ll try not to underwhelm her.”

 

The interesting food place Viktor mentioned happened to be a cozy looking izakaya a few blocks from the Hasetsu Castle. In the aftermath of the sudden fight, there weren’t a lot of customers despite it being a weeknight. Well, it was a surprise that it was open at all.

Aside from a few office workers, the place was occupied by their group of five. The place itself looked to rely on staff instead of the touch panel that had become a norm in other izakaya places Yuuri had been to in the city. They took a seat at a longtable, rather than one of the tatami rooms off to the side.

Yuuri explained to Viktor how proper dining at an izakaya was done and the Russian’s eyes lit up as he took in every word. Meanwhile Minako had already waved a waitress over and was already giving her orders, along with Phichit who already knew how this worked. And despite his sulky expression, Yuri seemed engrossed and at the same time confused with the choices offered on the menu.

“Wow! So I can order any time I want to eat something?” Viktor asked.

Yuuri made a sound of agreement. “You can. Usually we order a drink first and then we slowly start to order the food.”

Viktor hummed, his eyes scanning the selection of beverages. He turned his head and flashed Yuuri a playful looking smile. “Then, Katsuki-san. Would you mind recommending to me something to drink?” He asked.

Yuuri felt his cheeks flush. Right, just a recommendation. He can do that. “Ah, no problem. They… they have the local shochu served here. We can try that one for a start. And maybe some yakitori, you’d like it, I think.”

The waitress took their drink orders too, as well as an orange juice for Yuri since no one wanted to attempt giving alcohol to someone underaged. The first round of food was ordered as well, and soon their table was pulled into a light conversation as they waited.

“It’s a wonder though isn’t it, Yuuri?” Minako said beside him. “Even with the whole of Japan upended with the fog’s threat, people still continue to brew the good stuff like these. Heck, even with the world ending, I doubt you’d ever get rid of alcohol.”

Which was true. If the small breweries he often passes by between the city and the base were any hints to the still booming business of Japan’s alcohols.

“With the lack of agricultural space though, how do they manage to produce alcohol?” Viktor asked, resting his chin on his raised fingers. “In Russia, they’ve resorted to underground breweries and greenhouses. Right under the dome cities. Most of the ingredients are imported too, that’s why the prices of alcohol are rather expensive even for the watered down versions that were sometimes snuck into the base.”

“Wait, snuck in liquor?” Yuuri quipped. “You snuck in liquor?”

Viktor chuckled. “No, not me. When I was younger, my peers would sneak in alcohol and hide it in the suitcases. I think they still do.”

“Ingredients are exported from the tropics, most likely.” Phichit interjected smoothly, his phone out and the occasional sound of the shutter going off. “Thailand’s rice export is in high demand along with any other crops that grow well in the weather we have. Pretty sure Japan’s sake industry is still alive because of those kinds of exports.”

“Isn’t overpopulation still a crisis in your country? How do your farmers keep up with the demand?” Viktor asked.

“Most tropical countries have that problem. So far the government is handling the housing and proper zoning well enough, but that’s just giving the benefit of a doubt.” Phichit shrugged, “Things aren’t always simple anyway.”

The conversation slowly moved on from the economics of alcohol, to something more familiar like homeland food and the current affairs. At the least, Yuuri could engage in those topics with more confidence, especially with Viktor inclined to ask him instead of Minako. Even with eighty years gone by and almost half of what he knew was somewhat outdated, it was a saving grace that Viktor knew little enough of Japan to be easily impressed by what Yuuri tells him. Even the young Russian blonde was starting to get into the conversation, though he was still withholding himself most of the time.

The appetizers came and went, the drinks stayed a little longer as their orders slowly came to the table. As the group started picking out their favorites, an incessant buzzing made Yuri swear under his breath and Yuuri looked up from the wakame salad to see the young blonde pull out his phone.

Yuri took one look at his phone and typed something, dropping the phone with enough force to make it bounce a little on the table.

“Ah! Careful with your phone, Yuratchka.” Viktor lightly admonished. Viktor slid the phone back to Yuri, who promptly silenced the next incoming call and turned his phone off after that.

“Who’s calling him?” Phichit asked, watching Yuri with vague interest over his chuhai.

“Dunno, could be his Keeper. Yuri isn’t here on any official business.” Yuuri answered, taking a bite out of his skewered meat.

The next moment, it was Viktor’s phone was vibrating and he answered the call. “I’m with him, Yakov.” Viktor said by way of greeting, a smile on his face. A moment later, he handed the phone over to Yuri, the amused smile still plastered to his face.

Shooting Viktor a betrayed look, Yuri gingerly took the phone and spoke. “I’m not going back, old man.”

Suffice to say, Yuuri blocked out the rest of their conversation and focused on Phichit’s gushing of the pictures he was uploading to his social media. From what he could see of his friend’s screen, the picture taken was a wide selfie with half of his face in the picture while Viktor and Yuri were in the background. Viktor was enthusiastically picking up a piece of karaage with chopsticks, while Yuri had his gaze focused on the lotus chips like it had offended him somehow.

Yuuri checked his own phone and immediately found the picture, tapping quickly on the like button before locking his screen. He took a tiny sip of his own drink and ate some of the salad, watching Viktor’s face light up with delight as he tasted one dish after another.

Watching Viktor display such childlike appreciation and happiness made Yuuri feel something akin to delight as well. To think he’d be able to witness this part of the renowned Skater, up close as well. It felt too much like a dream come true and he silently hoped the rest of the night could be spent like this, eating and talking without a care in the world.

“Listen old man, I’m not going back to Russia until Viktor makes good on his promise- What do you mean it’s useless?! You know how Viktor always runs off doing his own thing. How about I get him to keep his promises for once?” Yuri bellowed into the phone.

Minako snickered, a faint red flush on her face as she had finished half of her second glass. “Sounds like Viktor’s a heartbreaker in more ways than one.” She commented, then directed her next words to the man in question. “Hey Viktor, looks like you’ve got a real stubborn kid on your hands.”

“Hey, I’m not a kid!”

Viktor looked up from regarding the chilled tofu, blinking at her. He glanced at the younger Russian still running his mouth off at Yakov before taking the phone from a surprised and protesting Yuri.

“I can coach Yuri while he’s here.” Viktor said easily into the phone. The whole table fell silent at that, even Yuuri paused mid-sip.

“What?” Both Yuri’s said at once.

“I can coach Yuri.” Viktor repeated, though it seemed he had done so for the man on the other end of the call. He picked at the tofu in front of him, taking small pieces and popping it into his mouth during pauses in their conversation. “Ah, don’t worry Yakov. I won’t. No, it’s fine. When have I ever let you down?” Yuuri observed Viktor closely as his lips quirked up at the ends, his eyes taking on a look that looked triumphant. The conversation went on for a while longer before Viktor finally put down the phone and finished off the rest of the tofu.

“Oi, Viktor. Did you really just do that?” Yuri was the first to break the silence.

Viktor stared blankly at the younger Russian. “Did you want me to say no?” He asked, sounding confused. “I could-”

“No! No. Geez, Viktor!” Yuri exclaimed, shaking his head. Yuuri looked between the two, finding himself wondering if this is supposed to mean something to him.

“Katsuki-san!”

“Y-yes?”

“Can I have more of this tofu please?”

Yuuri stared at Viktor for a moment, catching himself before it became too awkward and flushed as he waved for the waitress’s attention. Whatever was happening was between him and the young Skater, not him. Besides, it wasn’t like Viktor had anything else to do so having Yuri around just meant he was able to fulfill another promise instead of wasting away doing nothing.

This really shouldn’t concern him at all.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! The next scheduled chapter release is on 06/26. A fair warning that things will start 'slowing down' from hereon out but that's what the tag warning is for.
> 
> The art of eating at an izakaya is something I've researched online, as well as consulted with friends who have firsthand experience. I don't also really look at the character trivia on the YoI wiki page, because I want to take a slightly different approach to a characters' personal preferences.
> 
> As always, if there's anything wrong grammatically or other, please let me know!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri takes an initiative.

 

“So let me get this straight. Viktor decided to coach you because he promised himself to help you improve, and then he goes and coaches the other Yuri while you haven’t figured out if you want to or not?” Yuuko asked him as she leaned back against the railing of the rink.

“That’s the gist of it.” Yuuri answered as he leaned against the railing beside her. It was another Tuesday afternoon and it looked like the rink was completely occupied by the whole population of Skaters on base. Since the successful driving away of the fog last week, the whole special unit was still abuzz with lingering excitement. Even the Artists who had been on standby the whole time had been watching the fight with apprehension and interest.

That being said, Yuuri didn’t have a lot of room to do his skating like he’s used to. He had the sneaking suspicion that most were only prolonging their time in the rink for the sole purpose of seeing Viktor. And the blonde Yuri too, now that Yuuri had been told by Yuuko that he was a protégé in the Russian ranks.

_Senior division at fifteen years old. That’s not something anyone can do so easily._ Yuuri thought. Well, for now he didn’t really need to skate so much since Yuuko was taking up most of his attention. A few days apart and there was already so much to share with her.

But back to the matter at hand.

“I don’t understand him as much as I’d like to, but I don’t know how to approach him outside of that night at the izakaya. It’s… difficult.” Yuuri finished lamely.

“Why? Is he still coming onto you with offers to sleep with you?” Yuuko asked, perfectly serious.

“That joke’s starting to lose its novelty, Yuuko.” Yuuri deadpanned, “Besides, the more I try to observe Viktor, the more confused I am with the way he acts. He’s nice and all, but I don’t… understand what’s driving him to do what he does.”

“I mean, me. Katsuki, Yuuri.” He gestured to himself, “No matter how you look at it, I’m an ex-Skater of little consequence who suddenly gets the offer of a lifetime from the one person so many people would kill for a chance to skate with, and it’s turning out to be a confusing ball of… things. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”

“That he’s far from the celebrity enigma that you’ve concocted in your head and it doesn’t make sense?” Yuuko offered.

Yuuri sighed and ran a hand over his face. “I guess that’s one way of putting it.”

The brunette looked thoughtfully at the ceiling while Yuuri was regarding Phichit carefully practicing his jumps in the middle of the rink. Celestino wasn’t around to coach him properly, being that he was taking over coaching a young Skater from China while the Skater’s coach was out of commission for the past three weeks.

‘Favor.’, Phichit had relayed to him. Celestino was just fulfilling a favor he owed that particular coach.

It didn’t deter his Thai friend though, and Phichit had been religiously going through all of his routines and making small improvements here and there with help from the other coaches on base.

“Hm… Viktor’s stranger than I actually expected him to be,” Yuuko said, earning her a confused glance from the younger one. “Well, to each his own. And he looks to be doing alright. He’s staying at least and that means you’ve got time to try and talk to him.”

“You’re not even surprised?” The bespectacled young man asked.

Yuuko shook her head. “That he’s being quote unquote Viktor? Not really. You don’t stay a Skater for as long as Viktor has been and not pick up quirks.” She explained, pinning him with her professional doctor look. “I know it’s probably something you don’t see much in Phichit, but some Skaters tend to become different from when they first get out there. Like how war can change the people who were involved in it.”

Yuuri hadn’t thought about it that way. He still lingered in the mindset that Skaters were like the ones of his time, even though it was blatantly obvious that it wasn’t the case. Beneath all the glamorous costumes, and the trainings that are very reminiscent of the usual activities of a skater’s career, they were all more than just talented people on the skates.

_They’re soldiers now, Yuuri. It wouldn’t be farfetched to say they can change rapidly too._ He mused quietly.

“Speaking of… Where is Viktor and the other Yuri?” His assistant therapist asked, looking at the mass of people idling about.

Yuuri shrugged his shoulders and stretched. “Yesterday, I saw Yuri yelling at Viktor about acting classes. The next thing I knew, they were both gone from the rink.”

“Acting classes…?” Yuuko repeated. “What would Yuri need acting classes for?”

Her guess was as good as his. Yuuri didn’t bother to verbally reply, shrugging his shoulders again and moved away from the railings to do a little bit of aimless skating. He weaved through a couple of Skaters, noticing that a few eyes followed him as he passed by.

It was no secret that Viktor had been in Yuuri’s room. If it wasn’t heard from the ones who had come to his aid that night, then it was likely from the selfies Phichit took of their shower with the caption, ‘The Ice Emperor had graced these tiles!!’

He regretted telling Phichit about that bit. He really did.

Swallowing down the sudden spike of self-consciousness, Yuuri made his way back to Yuuko’s corner. Maybe having a skating session today was a bad idea. All these people present were making his emotions inch closer to levels where he didn’t want them.

“Yuuri! Aren’t you going to go skating?” Phichit’s voice called to him as he skated up to them. He was in his training outfit and looked a little winded from his routine.

“I guess not a lot for today.” Yuuri answered with an added sigh. “Too many people out on the ice. It’s like the whole population of Skaters is right here.”

“Well it’s been like this since last Monday.” Phichit pointed out, leaning against the railing on Yuuri’s other side. “Can’t blame them. I mean… Viktor. Nikiforov. He turns heads faster than a screw can be drilled. And you forgot the coaches. Some of the Keepers are there on the rink side too.”

“I don’t see Suyin-san though, Phichit.” Yuuri commented, Suyin being Phichit’s assigned Keeper on base since his arrival in Japan. She was a middle-aged half-Thai who had majority of the female Skaters under her care, sans Phichit who said he was the first male she’d ever handled.

“Nah. Suyin isn’t into Viktor.” His friend remarked casually. “Besides she’s looking after Mikoto after her incident yesterday.”

“I see.”

“By the way, I thought you said Minako didn’t have a juniors’ instructing class today?”

“Minako-sensei said she had something to do for a bit and left me here with Yuuko.” Yuuri answered. Well, almost all of the junior division was out here as well. Yuuri continued to look at the people passing by with an increasingly despondent and vaguely annoyed stare. No one seemed willing to get off the ice soon.

It was irritating that he couldn’t skate freely without accidentally bumping into someone else with the limited space. Yes, he could do step sequences, but he can’t do jumps confidently without the possibility of hitting someone on his way down. And it was ridiculous, considering the rink was large enough on its own to simulate a good stretch of field.

People were just skating about, chatting with each other and very few were actually using the time to practice their routines. The coaches he was familiar with in passing were even in the rink and pretending to look busy. The only available space was in the center of the rink, but that also meant being the object of attention of all these people and Yuuri didn’t particularly feel happy about so many witnessing any failures that could happen.

“I feel like partially blaming Viktor for this predicament.” Yuuri mumbled to his friends and was just thinking about moving his next session earlier in the morning. He didn’t like waking in the morning too early but what could he do? Tell everyone off for hogging up the rink? He’d sooner be ignored or humiliated, as his mind would imagine it.

“Talking about me, Katsuki-san?” A voice behind them startled Yuuri and he jumped away from the railing as he turned to see the silver-haired Russian looking at him with gentle amusement.

“V-Viktor…! S-Shouldn’t you be coaching Yuri?!” Yuuri stammered out. Viktor tilted his head and blinked slowly.

“I am. But the little kitten needed to learn a few basics before I actually did anything with him.” The older man replied. He wagged a finger in the air and continued, “Yuri needs to learn that the requirements for the senior division are different and harder than what’s needed for the juniors. I admire his spitfire determination, but that’s not enough to help him survive out there, especially with his aim to become a solo Skater.”

“So… was that the acting classes he was talking about yesterday?” Yuuri asked and the Russian nodded. It wasn’t news to have Skaters take up extra classes like ballet or dance or even gymnastics to help train their bodies, but he’d never heard of a Skater taking up acting classes. Yuuri was almost tempted to ask.

“Eh? Katsuki-san, why are you just hanging around and not skating?” Viktor inquired, leaning over the railing closer to Yuuri.

“I’m… not comfortable with this many people on the ice right now.” Yuuri answered, subconsciously moving back and eyeing the other Skaters in his peripheral. Some were already looking their way, obviously not eyeing him but Viktor, but he still felt very self-conscious.

Viktor leaned back over the railing and put a finger to his chin, furrowing his brows in confusion. “That so? Aren’t there schedules that are supposed to be followed to prevent overpopulating the rink?”

“I was wondering that myself-” Yuuri was about to say when the doors to the rink opened and a very familiar face caught his attention.

“What the hell’s going on here?!”

The sudden shout caught their attention. Everyone in the room turned to look at a red-faced officer Morooka, looking quite intimidating in a clean pressed military uniform and a sharp look in his eyes as he took in the sheer number of people in the large room. Behind him was passive-faced Haruka and the one approaching them from behind him was… Minako? The smug looking Keeper waltzed up to their little group and greeted them casually.

“Sorry, thought I’d give everyone a little reminder that this is a military base and not a free gallery exhibition.” Was the first thing she said upon seeing the mixed reactions Morooka’s sudden presence was receiving, with said man’s angry voice in the background. “I managed to snag Hisashi-san after one of his meetings and told him about this little problem.”

“You told him, or you -told- him?” Yuuko asked cheekily, putting emphasis on the second phrase.

“Oh I told him.” Minako replied, using the same stress to mean it was the second. Yuuri himself didn’t quite understand what was being lampshaded, but didn’t ask. Beside him, Yuuko smiled and chuckled while Phichit had moved away from their group, lurking behind the large group being given an earful.

“You’re surrounded by good people, Katsuki-san.” Viktor spoke. The bespectacled man thought he even heard something wistful in his tone. As Yuuri turned to look at Viktor, the Russian skater met his gaze and smiled, a small warm quirk of his lips that he can’t remember seeing before. But it was gone in a flash and it was back to that ‘barely-there’ smile that always seemed to be Viktor’s default in front of people.

Yuuri blinked. Did he imagine it? Probably. But he didn’t get to do anything as Phichit had come back and was half-dragging Yuuri to the now mostly emptied rink, Morooka’s angry scolding having its desired effect.

Yuuri shot another look at Viktor, but the man had his attention turned to a familiar blonde approaching him on the rink side.

_It’s probably just my imagination then._ Yuuri convinced himself and focused on making a few jumps with Phichit playfully encouraging him on the side. It was like Phichit had created a small bubble that separated both of them from the rest of the world, and the encouragement had driven away any doubts in his mind. He followed an impromptu short program he and the Thai had concocted on the spot with a random song on Phichit’s playlist, something along the lines of a man dissatisfied with his life until he met an elephant who became the reason for him to take his life onto a different path. It was a silly story, but sounded like something right up Phichit’s alley of imagination and Yuuri was more than willing to work with it.

But even as he skated his heart out to the song, he couldn’t put his mind completely off the mysterious Russian man who’d crashed into his quiet life.

 

Later that night in the bathroom, Yuuri found himself reflecting on the past year as he brushed his teeth. He’d been doing a lot of this musing lately, and felt a little strange that it was happening because of the Russian. But it wasn’t bad, he thought. Rather it felt good that he was finally giving his thoughts some proper attention instead of pushing them away and avoiding any and all topics he didn’t like.

He thought about what Viktor said to him, how he was surrounded by good people and who would treat him as if he weren’t any different. That rang true the more he thought about it.

Yuuri could faintly remember growing up with very few friends, only having one or two who had been with him through the years.

_But then having everyone around me working hard doesn’t feel right._ He thought as he rinsed his mouth. _Why should I be content in my safety when everyone else is working hard to make this city a better place for even a few people they could reach out to?_

With last week’s surprise assault, Yuuri wasn’t even sure if he could be safe anymore.

He lifted his shirt, staring at the plump belly jiggling a little as he shifted his weight. Yuuri made a face and his shoulders deflated.

_Not good. It will take weeks for this to start getting burned off._ Yuuri thought. He had good metabolism when it came down to it, but he’d been eating more and doing less that the combination of skating, walking and working wasn’t enough to keep him fit. But he can’t put it off forever.

He stared in the mirror again, watching as the reflection of his face took on a determined countenance.

He wasn’t doing this for Viktor’s offer. There was still no way that he would accept it. Still, it was about time that he tried harder in his recovery, instead of just relying on the time he spends with Yuuko to get back into shape.

_But that also means cutting back on the food I like._ Yuuri internally sobbed. He would need to start cutting back until he was back into shape, but it was a sacrifice he’ll have to make. Pulling down his shirt to cover his paunch, Yuuri put away his toothbrush and stepped out into their bedroom.

Phichit was already in his pajamas and sounded like he was playing a game on his phone. Watching his friend, Yuuri supposes he could start making the effort now.

_Even if it looks selfish, at least it means I’m not just sitting around anymore._

He took a deep breath and exhaled.

“Hey, Phichit-kun?”

The Thai looked up from his phone and asked, “What is it, Yuuri?”

Yuuri took a moment to decide, swallowing as a wave of anxiety threatened to wash over him but he managed to evade it. He shifted his weight and focused a look towards his friend.

“Can I join you on your morning run tomorrow?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next scheduled chapter is going to be a bit delayed since I've suddenly gotten busy at work. The original date is 07/10, but it may be delayed a week or so, depending on how much free time I have left.
> 
> As always, feel free to leave a comment or criticism! Kudos is always appreciated.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! I'm still rather tied up with work and other things but managed to squeeze this in for you guys (bless my beta for doing the same for me too)
> 
> The challenge here is that I’m writing this in a (mostly) closed third person view, which in this case is Yuuri. This means I’m writing only what Yuuri sees, hears, feels, thinks, etc. And knowing Yuuri, this is going to be quite a case of unreliable narration. Also, I am awful at titles.

 

Today the sky appeared somber, with thick greyish clouds stretching as far as his eyes could see. Temperatures hit a chilly low in this weather, and kept a lot of people from venturing out of their homes.

Under the overcast sky, Yuuri couldn’t tell if it was midday or close to sunset. Coming from his work, he kept a brisk walk back to the base, his mask up while his scarf was wrapped around his neck, snugly covering half of his face. He also had on a blue knitted winter hat, a gift from Minako last year. He had a tracklist playing in his earpiece, keeping his thoughts mildly occupied rather than over planning the rest of his day.

_Rink. Then dinner with Phichit-kun. Rink. Dinner with Phichit-kun. I have maybe about an hour and a half to skate and that should leave me enough time to still run to the dorms for a quick change._ Yuuri quickly recalled what he’d been telling himself since he got a dinner invitation out from Phichit through text. That didn’t happen often despite being roommates, but it was always a treat since Phichit often took him to the little gems tucked away in the city, places Yuuri would often overlook in favor of someplace familiar.

He soon crossed the gates into the base, and continued walking until the dome of the ice rink loomed before him. Before he could enter though, a voice carried over the wind and the upbeat tune in his ears stopped him in his tracks.

“Good afternoon, Katsuki-san!”

The cheery voice of Viktor Nikiforov was becoming a normal thing to hear. He spent most of the daylight with the blonde Yuri as far as he knew, and the only times the two ever met were in brief moments before they retired to their rooms for the night. This moment was the first outside that routine in a while.

“Ah… good afternoon, Viktor.” Yuuri greeted with less enthusiasm, but all the same smiled at the man waving at him as he approached. Yuuri whipped out his phone and stopped the playlist just as Makkachin bounded over to him, leaping up to put his paws on him in greeting. Yuuri chuckled, unable to help himself with Makkachin and gave the dog a fond head rub.

“Going for a little time on the ice, Katsuki-san?” Viktor asked him.

“Yeah. I’m having dinner with Phichit later and I’d like to get some skating done before then.” Yuuri answered, “What about you, Viktor?”

The Russian hummed. “Mm… Yuri and I decided to have a day off. I got lost.” Viktor answered, sounding gleeful. “But not too lost. And Yuri found something he’s probably posting online right now.”

The bespectacled young man nodded. Sounds like the two Russians were rather enjoying their time here. From the sounds of it, Yuri was probably holed up in his room as well. Why Viktor was out here, Yuuri himself could only guess. “That sounds nice, even if you did get lost.” He replied passively. He was about to turn and enter the rink when Viktor suddenly called out to him again.

“Ah, Katsuki-san!”

“… Yes, Viktor?” As much as he had grown accustomed to Viktor’s presence, it was still hard to figure out the guy and act accordingly. Even if honest words had been exchanged between them, Yuuri still can’t get out of the habit of saying whatever another expects from him. It made them leave him alone faster. Viktor seemed to take a thoughtful pause, before he flashed a smile.

“May I join you in skating?”

Yuuri’s face heated up instantly. Hold the phone, he heard that correctly right? He did. He sure did.

“J… Join me? Viktor, I…” Yuuri trailed off, looking away feeling embarrassed and oddly elated that Viktor had asked. This would mark the first time he’d ever be on the same ice as the Russian and somehow the suddenness made it all feel too surreal.

Viktor seemed to have read it differently, and his expression shifted slightly. “If you don’t want to, I understand-”

“Ah… I-I mean, yes! Yes, I’d love for you to join me… on the ice. Erm,” Yuuri flushed, “I mean, you could skate too. If it’s because you don’t have a schedule today, I can vouch for your presence if anyone asks.” _Then again, who would question Viktor?_

Viktor said nothing in argument, and instead thanked him. Together they entered the dome, heading straight to the rink and their lockers. They shed off their coats and scarves, placing them on the bench between them as they took off their shoes and started to tie up their skates.

A quick curious glance at Viktor caused Yuuri to notice that his skates were not the military fare either. _So he must have brought his own._ Yuuri observed that it was at least tailored like his, with the exception that the blades were plated in gold instead of the typical silvery steel.

They each did several warmups afterwards, with Viktor wordlessly offering to help Yuuri with a few stretches and in turn, Yuuri would help Viktor. It almost felt nice, having this professional camaraderie between them.

 

“So… What made you want to come out here to the rink?” Yuuri asked, in an effort to disperse the quiet that was beginning to settle.

“I just missed it. Skating.” Viktor answered and sat up from his last stretch. “It’s been a while and waiting for Yuri to finish his first assignment is getting boring.”

“You mean his classes?” Yuri has been taking it for a few days now, and for all the time that Yuuri spent in the rink, he hasn’t seen the teenager on the ice at all.

“The little kitten is having troubles. Which I expected.” Viktor chuckled, “I’m sure he’ll be able to succeed soon enough once he figures out how to go around it. Until then I’m beside myself exploring your world. It’s really different from Russia, or even Europe.”

“My world? You mean Hasetsu? It’s a big city and I haven’t seen the whole of it myself.” Yuuri replied. _Well, aside the fact that it used to be a town, I never did venture further than my usual routes on my own._

“Yes! It never hurts to take time to explore the place you’re currently living in.” Viktor said with enthusiasm. He quickly stood, and to Yuuri’s bewildered surprise, bent to offer him his hand.

“Let’s go, Katsuki-san?” His eyes twinkled with anticipation.

Yuuri stared at the hand for a moment. Should he take it or not? That surreal feeling returned, and reminded Yuuri of their first meeting. His hands shook slightly and instead, he stood straight up without taking the offered hand. “S-sure, let’s go.” He answered, cheeks flushed and making a beeline for the rink.

When he finally looked back, Viktor was close behind him. His expression was back to its default smile and vaguely amused eyes, preventing Yuuri from cluing in on what Viktor was thinking about his refusal to take his hand.

_Why am I trying to avoid him?_ Yuuri wondered quietly. It was silly asking himself, however, when no answer was forthcoming. Surely the man was only trying to be friendly, but there was just something too strange about a great man like Viktor Nikiforov wanting to be… well, anything with him.

Yuuri was pulled from his thoughts when Viktor skated past him, heading straight to the center of the rink. He stopped there, head bowed and hands lowered, one behind him and one resting against his thigh. Around him, the other Skaters quickly moved to the sides, any and all chatter dying away until the silence was so thick one could hear a pin drop.

And then Viktor began to move.

To say that Yuuri was awed when Viktor started to skate was an understatement. He was frozen to the spot, almost forgetting to breathe as his eyes followed each movement. He skated to a sound only he can hear, weaving on the ice as if it were a canvas made for him to paint an invisible story. The rink was made his.

The atmosphere had changed, charged with an emotion Yuuri couldn’t quite name but felt familiar with. Viktor picked up speed and effortlessly completed a flip, triple Salchow and double toe loop in quick succession, moving quickly into a step sequence and made generous use of his arms. At first they flicked out almost angrily, as Viktor pushed past an invisible crowd. Then the movements become sluggish, more deadened and the force that had been there moments ago faded.

To Yuuri, there was a sense of sad beauty to the performance. Despite Viktor’s flawless and awe-inspiring execution, it felt rushed, as if desperate to convey something. Unlike in the videos where his expressions could be clearly seen, watching it here and now proved to be a challenge for Yuuri to decipher what expressions were flitting through the Russian’s face. In a way, a bubble of curiosity and annoyance floated up to the surface and he focused more intently.

It may be his imagination, but he thought Viktor’s eyes flicked towards him every now and then during the brief glimpses of his face. Yuuri didn’t have much time to think on it, for as soon as it had started, he watched as Viktor dramatically kneeled onto the ice, one hand clasped to his chest while the other was outstretched towards the ceiling, as if reaching with longing for something out of his reach.

His silvery bangs fell away in that moment, revealing to Yuuri the raw emotion that he saw there. His thoughts raced, the word forming on his tongue as he took a step forward-

Applause burst from all around from the others, breaking Yuuri from the dream he had unwittingly fallen into. He blinked, then looked to see Viktor already making his way back to him, looking exhilarated even when he appeared somewhat winded.

“Ahh, I think I’ll need to get back to skating more.” Viktor half-whined. Yuuri offered no remark for it, though his eyes refused to stray away from the Russian man.

“You’re something else, Viktor.” He spoke.

The Russian appeared bemused and he asked, “Hm? Whatever made you think that, Katsuki-san?”

“I mean, when you skate. Every time you skate. It feels like I’m watching something more… I can’t really explain it.” He spoke, sounding pensive and in awe all at once. “It’s beautiful, but that word doesn’t really describe it.”

And yet Yuuri couldn’t leave it at that. “Raw and powerful?” He ventured to say, “I think that’s one way to put it. It’s been so long since I’ve seen anyone skate like you do. But… I can’t help but feel like there was something incredibly… sad about it.” _What were you thinking in that moment, Viktor?_

Yuuri must have realized that he was talking without preamble again. Cheeks warm with an embarrassed flush, he apologized, “Ah, I’m sorry. I must be rambling.”

“Thank you for that.” Came the surprisingly sincere words. Confused, Yuuri glanced at Viktor. The Russian beamed, “You’re an honest person, Katsuki-san. I can see why people find it hard to not be charmed by you.”

Yuuri chuckled nervously. _Yeah… well, there’s a lot of inaccuracy with that statement but I’m not going to argue with him on that._

“It’s too bad that I won’t be able to see you out there skate. I really do love watching your performances- I mean, fights.” Yuuri remarked. “Will you be back on active duty soon? I mean, if I ever… you know.”

It was a rare moment, to see Viktor look away from him. Add to that there was something wistful in the way he smiled, but it was only there for a brief moment before it disappeared and replaced by his default smile as he answered, “Who knows. Maybe I’ll be back on the ice before you know it, or after ‘you know’.” Viktor spoke, using Yuuri’s same words in a lightly teasing manner. “But I’d rather something else happens before that.”

“Something else?”

“Something more fulfilling.” Was Viktor’s cryptic reply Yuuri had the sense that was all Viktor would be willing to part with.

“Anyway…”

The Russian put a finger once again to his lips, eyeing Yuuri with a smile and an impish gleam in his eyes. “Mm, Katsuki-san. Now that I’ve shown you something good…” He started and Yuuri really shouldn’t have thought that it sounded way too sultry to be accidental. Viktor leaned in a little closer, a pleasant smile on his face even when his whole aura sent alarm bells off in Yuuri’s head.

“V-Viktor…?” His voice did not just squeak. It did not. Unperturbed, Viktor leaned back but still had his eyes on him.

“It’s only fair that you let me see something from you as well. I’m not taking no for an answer.”

_Yuuri, you are so dead._ Was all his mind would offer in help.

An hour or so later, Yuuri was making his way to the dorms with a sore backside and perhaps feeling a little bit banged up somewhere else. There was this growing pool of despair inside of him, but that’s okay. That’s totally fine. A little giddy smile on his face contrasted what he felt, put there only because he managed to pull a long light-hearted laugh from Viktor with his otherwise god awful performance.

_That one’s probably going up on social media again and I am going to die from shame at this rate._ Not to mention, he’s already –probably- dying again inside.

Ah, life.

 

 

It didn’t take long before he met up with Phichit, only having changed his shirt and a quick run to the bathroom. The two exchanged a few words and soon Phichit was leading Yuuri to one of their usual haunts, a hole-in-the-wall restaurant that served one of the best oyakodon around. Phichit’s been a regular visitor enough that the servers recognized him and had given him his usual table for two near the corner and far from too many eyes.

They’d ordered and talked about small things while their meals were being cooked. Yuuri didn’t mention about him meeting with Viktor prior to their dinner, feeling miffed still about the tiles post. Though it was petty in hindsight, Yuuri thought his Thai friend would eventually get word of it if someone posted a video in the next few hours or talked about it. So far, Phichit hasn’t even looked at his phone since they’ve met up.

The food arrived and all conversation stopped as they paid respects for their meals and Yuuri began to dig in. After several hearty bites, he noticed Phichit hadn’t even taken more than one bite, instead picking apart the chicken strips aimlessly.

“Phichit-kun? You’re not hungry?” Yuuri asked. He hadn’t seen his friend look this distracted before.

There was a beat of silence. “I had a meeting with Ciao Ciao and the officers.” Phichit started, poking at his food still. “I’m being moved to China in two days.”

Yuuri’s chopsticks clattered to the table.

“What?” Yuuri understood it, but he couldn’t quite believe it anyway. “But Hasetsu is understaffed as it is with Skaters. Why do you need to be moved there when they have enough Skaters to go around?”

“That was a problem with the Japanese higher-ups too. Ciao Ciao wasn’t able to convince the Chinese officers that it would be better if Guang-Hong flew over here instead. They claimed they couldn’t let go of a fresh entry into the senior’s division out of their sights. Too early for a transfer, they said.”

“But… didn’t you say Guang Hong is already a year in seniors?” Yuuri sounded confused, and Phichit’s affirmation just added more to it. “This sounds like they’re trying to get you to move instead. Couldn’t they find Guang Hong another coach from there?”

“Believe me, Ciao Ciao tried. China has a lot of Skaters but not enough coaches to instruct all of them properly. Ciao Ciao had taken the work on as a favor at the start, but now it’s just become problematic. He wants out, but they can’t allow Guang Hong to be put on a bench because there isn’t a coach who could take him on. And it’s not the first time this has happened to Skaters. I’ve heard stories in Tokyo. Remember Yukuri-san?”

A Skater based in Tokyo and pretty well known for being one of Japan’s best. That was as much as he could remember at the moment.

“What about her?”

“She had a brief training period in the U.K. and they kept trying to prolong her stay until the Japanese government finally put a foot down and had her sent back on threat of pulling out all Skater support. She hasn’t been sent anywhere else since. With me though, I’m not a Japanese native, so the government cannot extend the same weight of threat.”

Yuuri mulled over the words, analyzing what was being said and implied. “And your government back home can’t help? At all?”

The Skater shook his head, shoulders slumped. “No. That’s the problem with the current law we have for the special unit. It only ever applies to Skaters born in fog-affected countries, not for those born in the tropics. My government probably would have been able to help if they were taking me from them, but I’m based here in Japan, where I’m just about as good as a glorified soldier with no real affiliation.”

And that meant, no one cared if an unusual Skater like Phichit had made a life for themselves where they were. They could very well be uprooted as quick as that and be sent off to a different base, a different country without much notice. A soldier’s life, albeit a more cruel one in Yuuri’s opinion.

“It’s not fair.” Yuuri mumbled, finding his appetite had dwindled after realizing Phichit would no longer be a solid presence for the foreseeable future. He wasn’t obsessively dependent on the Thai but the notice was just too sudden. Sure Phichit had his fair share of traveling to Tokyo and the smaller bases around Japan, but at the end of each sortie, he always came back and Yuuri had always looked forward to greeting him each time.

Phichit sighed, picking up a piece of chicken and popping it into his mouth. He chewed on it slowly and said, “I wish I could have a say in this, but I don’t. We go where the higher-ups tell us to go. No but’s or arguments about it. I thought Japan would finally be the place that I would be permanently settled in but I guess that’s not the case.”

Yuuri frowned. What would Phichit’s life be like in China? Would he be treated nicely? Or with disdain? He admits to being worried for him, especially since fog activity in China was rampant. Skaters were sent out almost every week to make preemptive assaults, and there were times when casualties couldn’t be avoided.

He wanted to be angry, wanted to feel annoyed for Phichit’s sake. But what use was his anger in the end? Nothing, that’s what. Phichit would still be sent off to China, and there would be a silence he’s never known that would replace the sunny presence in their shared room. It was still unfair.

A hand reached out and tapped his arm. Yuuri looked up at Phichit, who wore a smile despite the fact that he was affected by the news the most. He spoke, “I didn’t invite you out so we can both be sulky about this. Let’s make the best of our limited time and make some good memories, alright?”

“Ah… I guess.” Yuuri mumbled, his tone falling flat and unconvinced of his words. Phichit puffed up his cheeks and put on a full-on pout, before he deflated and chuckled.

“You’re such a gloom and doom turtle, Yuuri. Lighten up a little. At least Viktor’s here to shed a little light in your cave, right?” He teased. “Maybe you could even become friends with the Russian Punk too. Betcha he’d stop trying to one-up you if you offer him food.”

Yuuri pouted and popped some chicken and rice into his mouth, forcing himself to do something other than rise up to Phichit’s teasing. And offering food to the blonde spitfire?

_I’d probably get my hand eaten off._ He thought sullenly and even imagining the teenager literally taking a bite of his hand and the katsudon bowl.

“Can we just… not talk about them for a little bit? I mean we’re supposed to be… not-celebrating your move to China. Are we even drinking tonight?” Yuuri asked.

Phichit laughed, smirking deviously in reply. “Hey, hey. We can’t have my last two days here spent gorging ourselves on whatever our paychecks could afford. How about this? A pumped up exercise regime for the two of us. So by the time I get to China, I’ll be so buff I’d impress the local Skaters while you’re lean, mean and ready to flex those moves at Viktor.”

“I just told you not to talk about him.”

“Whoops, my bad.” He didn’t look apologetic at all. “But I’m just teasing you as much as I can before I leave. Gotta pack for the long haul, you know. I’m going to miss my best friend and recording all of his future endeavours.”

“Phichit-kun, as my friend, how much more embarrassed can you make me feel?” Yuuri glowered half-heartedly at the Thai, who only grinned and gave him a double thumbs-up.

Against the unfair treatment, against even the fog, it seemed like nothing could permanently wipe the smile off of his face and the twinkle in his eyes. Yuuri felt himself envious of Phichit’s ability to be so optimistic.

“You’re going to be fine, Yuuri. And I’m going to be fine. We’re stronger than this and it’s not like we can’t talk over the internet.” Phichit spoke with absolute conviction, making Yuuri smile.

_Right. What am I getting so worked up for? We’re going to be fine._

_Everything’s going to be fine._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter release is still a bit unsure at this point. But keep an eye out just in case!
> 
> If any of you are curious about the 'song' that Viktor might have been skating to, [Vedel Birno](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL1sRiiDc2Y) of Granado Espada is my inspiration for it. I've been a veteran of this game (until our server shut down) and it's a treasure trove for skate music (especially for our dear little tiger XD). I would wax poetic about why I chose this particular song but I'd rather have you guys close your eyes and have your own imaginations do the thinking.
> 
> As always, let me know if I missed any errors. And thank you for reading!
> 
> [08/10 Update] I'm currently shifting priorities to personal writing and work tasks that have deadlines I can't move. So writing for this fic will be on hiatus. Don't worry, I have not given up on this project and at least considering this for en masse updating in November ala NaNoWriMo.


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